To ease consumer transactions, the central bank has begun the printing of 200 rupees notes. With this step, India’s re-monetization has entered into its final lap.
The notes of ₹200 denomination are being printed in one of the government-owned facilities after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) placed an order a few weeks ago for the bills.
The introduction of the ₹200 currency notes predates the federal government’s decision to overnight withdraw bills of the higher denomination in November as part of a broader exercise to stop counterfeiting and curbing untaxed cash in Asia’s third-biggest economy.
During demonetization, old ₹500 notes and ₹1,000 notes were announced illegal. To overcome that effect, the government has released ₹2,000 notes and new ₹500 notes. A minor part of that has been replenished by 2000 rupee notes and a larger part by the new 500 rupee notes, though not in full. The introduction of 200 rupee notes will replenish the missing middle, triggered by the withdrawal of the old series of 500 rupee notes.
The new 200 notes will carry advanced security features. The authorities are taking extra precaution to prevent counterfeiting. Currently, those notes are going through different levels of security and quality checks at the government’s press unit at Hoshangabad in Madhya Pradesh.
The printing of currency notes is done either in printing units run by the government-run Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Ltd or at printing presses in Mysore and Salboni which are managed by the RBI-owned Bharatiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Private Ltd.