The GDP this year is Rs 150 lakh crore, so one per cent hit is Rs 1.5 lakh crore," Chidambaram said at a function here today.He is in the city to campaign for the. Without naming Prime Minister Narendra Modi , he said, "So, somebody hit an idea in his head, he decided to go on television and announce demonetisation, and the hit is Rs 1.5 lakh crore (on GDP)." Chidambaram said.He said Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of currency was cancelled overnight and now the government is printing notes to bring back Rs 15.44 lakh crore of notes. After taking away Rs 15.44 lakh crore worth of currency, now the currency in circulation, including in the denominations of 100, 50, 20, 10 and theis now about Rs 9.5 lakh crore, he said.But to sustain an economy which is Rs 150 lakh crore, Rs 9.5 lakh crore is not enough and more money needs to be printed, Chidambaram said. "By March, we should have about Rs 11 lakh crore of currency back in circulation and by June we would have Rs 15.44 lakh crore.

Source: Times of India February 12, 2017 10:41 UTC