Deposing Before Parliamentary Panel, RBI Governor Acknowledges 1.12 Lakh Fake Rs. 500 Notes Found in 2024-25
The Wire Staff
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New Delhi: During his deposition to a parliamentary committee, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra accepted remarks by an MP, that 1.12 lakh currency notes of Rs. 500 denomination were found to be fake during 2024-25. RBI Governor deposed before the Parliamentary committee on Finance on Thursday (July 10).
The RBI’s annual report for 2024-25 had found that counterfeit currency notes of Rs. 500 denomination had risen by over 37 per cent annually, to 1.18 lakh fake notes during 2024-25. This is more than the Rs. 1.12 lakh notes pointed out by the MP in the meeting. Rs. 500 notes were the most faked of currency notes.
A report in The Tribune says that Malhotra, during his deposition, further told the committee headed by BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab, that though the Rs. 2,000 denomination notes are now out of circulation, these have not been invalidated and remain as legal tender.
The newspaper quotes Malhotra as telling the committee that the other denominations where fake currency notes were found included Rs. 100 (51,069 pieces), Rs. 200 (32,660 pieces), and Rs. 2,000 (3,508 pieces) in 2024-25, as per the RBI report which was put out in May. This is out of the total of over 6 crore notes.
Overall fake notes detected in 2024-25 remained almost the same as compared to 2023-24, when there were 2.18 lakh fake notes found, as against 2.23 lakh fake notes in the previous year.
During the parliamentary committee’s meet, several issues were also reportedly discussed, and opposition members questioned contradictions in the RBI’s role. Congress MP Manish Tewari is said to have suggested that the RBI should focus on its core activity of regulating banks and a few select areas, avoiding multiple roles that could lead to conflicts of interest.
The committee also discussed cryptocurrency regulations, but what the RBI said has not been disclosed publicly, reports The Times of India. The committee will meet again “on July 23 or 24”, said Mahtab.
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