“How to convert black money into white money” was trending on the Google search engine*, with queries surging soon after Indian Government’s announcement to ban Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes making 86% of currency in circulation valueless.
As a result of this sudden demonetisation, the mighty Google has been approached in India to find methods of converting ‘black money to white’.
“Black money” is normally the local term used for cash stashed away to avoid tax.
The following were the major regions that top charted in Google trends:
Gujrat – Google trends show that Prime Minister Modi’s home state, Gujrat led the way to find magical ways of turning black money to white. This state is known for its entrepreneurial spirit, small scale industry and jewellers.
Maharashtra – Maharashtra’s capital city Mumbai is India’s financial hub. Mumbai is one of the world’s top 10 centers for commerce in terms of global financial flows. In facts, it is the wealthiest city in the country. According to a report, Mumbai accounts for 25% industrial output, 5% of India's GDP and also 70% of the capital transactions in Indian economy.
Haryana – Maharashtra is closely followed by Haryana, a state which is top news-maker for its controversial real estate deals.
Punjab – Punjab is one of India’s richest states. This region will hold elections early next year in Feb 2017. There are reports that the unexplained cash often ends up being used during the election time to bribe voters.
In Punjab, top four searching districts were Amritsar, Jalandhar, Patiala, and Ludhiana.
In addition to searching “Converting Black Money to White”, Indian internet users also sought information about the government’s planned new currency notes. Questions on the new currency were among the top five searched topics for Google from India since last Tuesday.
Out of 3 billion global users, India now has 277 million Internet users surpassing the US and second only to China (710 million), says the 2016 Internet Trends report by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.
NDTV reports that Google India didn't immediately respond to an e-mail seeking comment on the recent Google Trends.
* The stats shown represent a comparative account only and do not represent actual number of clicks across the region.
* Google trends “How to convert black money into white” vs “Convert black money to white” results in different portfolios.
