As the song goes, Anjali Kulkarni's life is all about the money. Well, almost. Her entire working day is spent counting the money people bring in to deposit in the bank. Says the petite lady, who is a receiving cashier at the Punjab National Bank, M.G. Road branch, ``I come in at 10.15 a.m. so that I am ready for the first customer when the bank opens its doors at 10.30 a.m. For that, I have to first keep the cash register ready.''In a day, Kulkarni averages about 50 customers who come in to make a deposit. ``But at the beginning of the month, we have about 80 customers from 10.30 a.m. to 2.30 p.m. My job involves putting down the name, account number and, of course, counting the money.'' Which can be a lot really. In a day, the lady receives about Rs 5 lakh, and sometimes, the figure can go up to Rs 8 lakh too.How does she handle it? ``After 20 years in the bank, I am quite used to it. In fact, though I cannot be 100 per cent sure, I think I can make out a fake note just by the feel of it. They tend to be thicker than usual. Though at rush hours, they can go unnoticed sometimes.''A small mistake on her part and she has to pay dearly for it. ``As cashiers, we are responsible for all the money the bank receives or gives out. Just yesterday, when I tallied the register, I realised that I was short of Rs 50. Finally, I had to pay from my own pocket.''``With small denomination notes, it does not hurt so much, but if we make a mistake with a Rs 500 note, then that can make a big hole in the pocket. After collecting the cash, Kulkarni has to tally the cash, register amounts and make bundles. ``Each denomination note has to be put in a packet of 100 notes each. Then 10 such packets have to be put together to make what we call a bundle.''Counting Rs 5 to 8 lakh everyday seems like an uphill task, but the lady manages that in just an hour. ``If the notes are of the 100 or 500 denomination, then it's easy, but if the bundles are in 10s, then God help me, I'll probably be in the bank for the whole day.'' And you can bank on that!
