No harassment for small depositors, scrapping of notes to have long term impact on economy : Arun Jaitley

"Nobody will face any questions or harassment of any kind for small deposits. Only those with large amount of undisclosed money will have trouble," Jaitley said.

The Finance Minister, while answering reporters, said  that steps taken on scrapping of old notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000  will have long-term impact on the Indian economy and the spending habits of the people.

"This is the proof of our leadership," he said.

"We are trying to ensure at the earliest requisite replacement currency is available to people; believe that no need to rush in initial days," Jaitley said.

"Banking department, RBI has taken all necessary steps to keep banks open to the extend necessary; it has been kept open on weekend too."

Commenting on the hardship of the people, he said it is only "temporary."

"For few days people might think that they are facing problems, but in long run they will definitely benefit," Jaitley said.

The Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes stood scrapped from the midnight of Tuesday following an announcement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the evening.

The Government says the move has been taken to crackdown on unaccounted wealth.

The Government has asked the people to deposit their Rs. 500 and Rs. 1000 notes in banks within a specific time frame and get smaller denominations in exchange.

It has also  announced that deposits above Rs. 2.5 lakh will be taxed and could draw a 200 per cent penalty if found disproportionately higher than the account owner's income.

The banks have been asked to keep the details of PAN card of people depositing such large amounts over the 50-day period till December 30. 

Banks will remain open this weekend and many banks have announced longer working hours.