Indian people stand in a queue to deposit and exchange discontinued rupees outside a bank in Jaipur, India. Photo: Vishal Bhatnagar / NurPhoto/AFP
Indians have run out of cash, four days after the government unexpectedly announced the highest value bank notes were obsolete.
Tempers frayed and scuffles broke out as millions of people queued for hours outside banks and ATMs to swap their now worthless 500 and 1000 rupee bank notes.
Many cashpoint machines were not working. Others ran out of money.
India's finance minister, Arun Jaitley, admitted cashpoint machines were not calibrated to dispense bank notes to replace ones withdrawn last week.
Long queues have grown longer, scuffles have broken out and chaotic scenes are being seen across India. Photo: Vishal Bhatnagar / NurPhoto/AFP
It would take time for banks to do that work.
In the meantime, large parts of India's cash-driven economy threaten grind to a halt.
Authorities said the change would help them catch those hoarding cash and evading tax.
Delhi's chief minister, Arvind Kejriwal, said the move had hurt poor people most.
