The Centre has decided to set up a sub-committee of Chief Ministers to review the ground- level situation following its decision to demonetise high value currency and suggest possible ways to ease problems.

Sources said Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu has been asked to chair the committee. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, along with Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy are likely to be members of the panel.

Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is also understood to have spoken to Naidu on the issue.

Political strategy This move is also being seen as a political strategy by the Centre to diffuse any possible differences with the States on the demonetisation plan and the proposed GST Law.

“People have been facing problems after the demonetisation of ₹500 and ₹1,000 currency notes. The Centre wants to get more perspective on how challenges in the implementation of the measure can be addressed,” said a person familiar with the development.

Earlier, the Finance Ministry had also set up a committee of officials, from which teams have been asked to visit various towns and villages across the country and review the impact of the withdrawal of high level currency notes that accounted for nearly 86 per cent of all notes in circulation.

Naidu has been actively working to ensure that demonetisation does not impact day-to-day life in Andhra Pradesh and has also written to the Centre to provide smaller denomination notes to the State and also provide 80 per cent subsidy on E-Pass machines to businessmen.

Nitish Kumar has supported the Centre’s move as a “courageous step” but noted that poor arrangements have caused problems for the poor.

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