The Reserve Bank of India has provided clarity regarding the purportedly missing banknotes that have been mentioned in various media. The RBI made it clear that the reports are false. It was also mentioned that all notes supplied by the printing press to the RBI are properly accounted for.
The RBI also added that there are robust systems in place of the reconciliation of banknotes printed at the presses and supplied to RBI which included the protocols to monitor production, storage and distribution of banknotes.
Also added that ‘the members of the public are, therefore, requested to rely on the information published by RBI from time to time in such matters’.
The background of the media reports mentioned by the RBI was based on the data revealed through the Right to Information (RTI) filed by an Activist. It was revealed that 500 rupees notes worth ₹88,032.5 crore are missing from the Indian Economy.
According to the Data released under the Right to Information Act (RTI), the RBI had only received 7,260 million out of the 8,810.65 million newly designed 500 note pieces that the three mints had issued.
Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran (P) Limited in Bengaluru, Currency Note Press in Nashik, and Bank Note Press, Dewas in Madhya Pradesh are the three Indian institutions that print currency notes.
The activists reportedly wrote to both the ED and the Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB) to inquire about this disparity. Senior RBI officials have also defended this inconsistency by citing the extensive logistics required for the printing and distribution of the currency notes.
The circulation of bank notes with a Rs. 2000 denomination has just been discontinued by the RBI. It will still be accepted as legal tender, though. The public has been allowed till September 30, 2023, to deposit or exchange Rs. 2000 banknotes.
Read More: RBI to withdraw Rs. 2000 Notes From Circulation; Exchange Notes till Sept. 30, 2023
Additionally, according to the apex bank’s annual reports, the number of fake 500 currency notes found climbed by 14.4% to 91,110 pieces in 2022–23 from the previous year.
However, on June 17, 2023, the RBI has clarified that the information of the media reports was not correct and all the bank notes are duly accounted.
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