Former RBI chief Subbarao says demonetisation was not required for digitisation of economy

Kolkata: Reserve Bank of India’s former Governor D. Subbarao on Wednesday said the benefits of demonetisation would depend on the objectives of it.  “I think what you have to see how much income tax has gone up because of demonetisation. “The benefits of demonetisation depends on what the objectives are. The primary objective of demonetisation had to be (unearthing) of black money,” he said at the Bandhan Bank’s second-anniversary celebration. He said everybody agreed that the cost of demonetisation would be short term while benefits would come in long term. Subbarao argued that demonetisation was not required for the digitisation drive and that the fourth quarter GDP slowed down substantially due to it.