Two variants of the new Rs 500 note surface, the RBI says printing defect due to rush – Times of India

BENGALURU: Just two weeks into circulation, there are already different variants of the the new Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Rs 500 notes+ , which experts fear could not only create confusion in the minds of the citizens but also aid counterfeiting — countering which was one of the top objectives of the Centre’s demonetization move and introduction of the new notes .

TOI found at least three case studies where the new notes have been found to vary from one another. In case of one note Abshar (he goes by one name), a resident of Delhi, says: “There is a more than the visible shadow of Gandhi’s face, besides alignment issues with the national emblem on the note and even serial numbers.”

Rehan Shah, a resident of Gurugram pointed out that the size of the borders of the notes were different. In case of two notes a Mumbai resident got when he made change for Rs 2,000, the notes were of different colours, with one being of a lighter shade. While he shared the picture with TOI, he refused to go on record.

the RBI spokesperson Alpana Killawala, said: “It is likely that the notes with printing defect has got released due to the current rush. However, people can freely accept such a note in the transaction or return it to the RBI.”

Forms Home Secretary GK Pillai told TOI: “the Prevention of counterfeiting is almost impossible, with the official mechanisms in Pakistan printing notes with access to as much sophistication as we do. So, it is only a matter of delay and the temporary suspension of such notes into the country that one could have hoped for. I cannot yet comment on the Rs 500 notes, as I am yet to see them, the Rs 2,000 notes are of good sophistication. That said, if the RBI says there is only one new 500-note it is printing, there should exist only one.”

Experts pointed out that multiple variants of the official notes will aid people attempting to infuse fake notes. “As it is people find it difficult to understand all the features of an official note and fail to check for everything before they accept one. Now, if there are too many versions of the official note, slipping into another would be easier than otherwise,” a service IPS officer who has dealt with crime for many years said.
Between January 2013 to September 2016, India has seized Rs 155.11 crore worth of counterfeit currency notes, Rs 27.79 crore of which was seized in the first nine months of this year. While the value of the seizures is hundreds of crores, the number of notes seized are only 31 lakh, equipped that majority of them were of high denomination notes. Also, the seizures, as security agencies point out time and again, are only a tip of the iceberg.
Forms DG&IG of Karnataka ST Ramesh, while echoing the views of the experts of di fferent variants of notes aiding the fake currency rackets, said: “Local printing of such notes has almost stopped. The notorious gangs from Coimbatore are more or less dead and all the notes come in from outside through Nepal, Bangladesh and other countries. Different variants of the official currency will certainly aid counterfeiting and it must be curbed immediately, unless of course, the RBI has strategically released this.”
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