Before we understand the implications of the demonetisation, it is important to note that black money or unaccounted cash and black economy are two different things, with the latter thriving on the former. Conservative estimates put the size of the black economy in India at Rs 45,000 billion. Various independent estimates indicate that up to 20 per cent of such black economy is in the form of cash possession (which arises from bribery, business malpractices, etc.) and the rest in land, real estate, jewellery, etc. It is this cash that the government is trying to unearth through this demonetisation move. However, the best thing is that the government is also trying to lay out a road map of dis incentivising the creation of black economy through better tax administration and reforms among other things simultaneously. The assessment of the impact of demonetisation on GDP growth is tricky because the costs and benefits cannot be properly quantified till the whole exercise is over. Also, imputing loss is dependent on cash intensity of the sector involved and how important is the disruption of one sector affecting other sectors. The three objectives [counterfeit currency, smuggling (narcotics and gold) and hoard cash] that demonetisation aims to achieve have considerable mutual interactions and to separate their individual impacts on GDP growth is a challenging exercise. Abolishing of higher denomination will not end the so-called black money problem, for it is more of systemic and structural issue and requires resolving the circularity between the cause and the cure.