Surge In Counterfeit Notes Of Rs 500 And Rs 2,000: Govt Tells Parliament

Data shared by the Ministry of Finance has revealed that there has been a huge surge in the detection of counterfeit notes in India. The statistics state that while there is a three-fold increase in the detection of Rs 2,000 notes from 2020-21 to 2023-24, the detection of fake Rs 500 notes has risen four times from the year 2018-19 to 2023-24.As per the information shared by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, the detection of fake notes of Rs 500 (Mahatma Gandhi New Series) increased from 21,865 million pieces (mpcs) in 2018-19 to 85,711 mpcs in 2023-24.The detection of Rs 2,000 counterfeit notes from 2022-23 to 2023-24 has increased from 9,806 mpcs to 26,035 mpcs, while in 2020-21, 8,798 mpcs of fake notes of the same denomination were detected.Year-On-Year Rise In Counterfeit NotesIn 2019-20, 30,054 mpcs of counterfeit notes of Rs 500 were detected, while in 2020-21, over 39,000 mpcs of fake notes were detected. In 2021-22, the detection of counterfeit notes rose to almost 80,000 mpcs. However, the detection of fake notes decreased to 85,711 mpcs in 2023-24 from 91,110 mpcs in 2022-23.In 2018-19, about 21,800 mpcs of counterfeit Rs 2000 notes were detected, while in 2019-20, it decreased to 17,020 mpcs. In 2021-22, it was over 13,500 mpcs.It has also been stated that on account of the ongoing withdrawal of Rs 2,000 banknotes from circulation and processing of these notes in large numbers, counterfeit notes detected in this denomination increased during the year 2023-24, according to the RBI.The data also outlined that, the total number of counterfeit currency notes of all denominations detected and reported in the banking system reduced from 3,17,384 mpcs in the year 2018-19 to 2,22,639 mpcs in the year 2023-24. The new notes of Rs 500 (Mahatma Gandhi New Series) and Rs 2,000 were issued after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in 2016.However, last year in May, the Reserve Bank of India announced the withdrawal Rs 2,000 notes from circulation.As per RBI’s data, the share of Rs 500 notes in overall currency jumped to 86.5% at the end of March 2024, i.e., after Rs 2,000 notes were withdrawn. In the preceding year, it was about 77%.