INDIA'S MOVE TO CURB BLACK MONEY A 'DISASTER' FOR WOMEN, ACTIVISTS SAY
India's move to withdraw high-value rupee bills from circulation to crack down on corruption and counterfeit currency has hurt rural women particularly hard, as most of them are outside the banking system, activists said. The shock currency move cancelling 500- and 1,000-rupee ($14.6) notes from circulation overnight, announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week, aims to bring billions of dollars worth of unaccounted wealth, or "black money", into the mainstream economy and check corruption. But it has also curbed consumption, hurt the agriculture and real estate sectors, and triggered long lines at banks and ATMs as people wait to deposit cash.