It has been over three weeks since PM Modi dropped the D-word. With demonetization of currency, the everyday life of a common man has taken a turn for the comical.
And now that our salaries have just been credited (Ka-ching!), the humble ATM has suddenly become our biggest fantasy – feeding onto our deepest desires! Every informal conversation at your home and / or workplace seems to be dominated by the mighty liquidity agenda. Cash is surely playing hard to get, to be honest. Progress during the transition has been slow but surely steady. The queues outside the ATMs might be thinning but we can’t be too sure. There’s always that lurking doubt whether an ATM is working or not, and if it is indeed functional, does it have sufficient cash, and if it is full of green, how many hours would one have to wait to withdraw some. O Mighty ATM, what did we ever do to thee?!
And that’s why we decided to put together a comprehensive (and hopefully resourceful) guide to help you find the nearest ATM which (surprise, surprise!) has cash.
1. Early Bird Gets The Worm
More often than not, you’ll find that the ATMs will have cash to dole out from 7am to 8am in the morning. Based on the events of the past few weeks, data seems to indicate that there is a high probability i.e. 80% that you’ll be able to withdraw cash in the wee hours of the morning. Next time you’re looking to get your hands on some green, don’t forget to do so before 10am in the morning. Public opinion has led us to believe that more than 50% of the ATMs start indicating unavailability of cash by 10am.
2. Afternoon Spikes
Missed the 10am deadline, did you? Don’t sweat it! Your next best shot at securing some moolah is at 1pm in the afternoon. So vacate that sunny lunch spot, and rush towards the ATM already!
3. Evening Rush
Not much of an early bird? Go ahead and try your luck around 4pm. It has been reported that over 25% of the ATMs are stocked with cash at this hour. Give it a whirl. Don’t say we didn’t tell you!
4. Patience Is Bitter, But Its Fruit Is Sweet
All the ATMs report varying degrees of waiting time. So it’s time to come over to the dark side and accept the harsh reality – cash might be available, yes but there’s a price to pay in the currency of your time!
Bank On It!
State Bank and its affiliate banks seem to have better cash availability morning, noon & night. Furthermore, major private banks like ICICI and HDFC seem to be flush with liquidity.
Play By The Numbers
We’re thrilled to tell you that we’ve made these useful observations based on the effective crowd-sourcing via CashNoCash. It’s you, the people, who have shared thousands of updates about 400+ ATMs across Bengaluru. And that’s exactly what has made this guide possible. So pat yourself on the back, and pass this one along. It’s sure to come in handy!