You might have come across reports from several news agencies claiming that the Reserve Bank of India is planning to remove the old series of Rs.100, Rs.10 and Rs.5 from circulation by March-April. The reports suggest that Assistant General Manager of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) B Mahesh said that the old series of currency notes, including Rs.100, Rs.10 and Rs.5, are likely to go out of circulation by the end of March or April.
Reported by several news agencies
Several news agencies claimed that the said denominations would be removed from circulation in March-April.
What exactly happened?
On January 21 (Thursday), RBI AGM B Mahesh was addressing a gathering at District-Level Security Committee (DLSC) and District-Level Currency Management Committee (DLCMC) meeting that was organized by the Lead Bank at Netravathi Hall on the Zilla Panchayat premises. During the meeting, Mahesh said that the banks should configure all their ATMs for the new series of currencies of the face value of Rs.100. He also mentioned that the old series of Rs.5, Rs.10 and Rs.100 will be gradually removed from circulation but did not mention any timeline.
Mahesh further added that there is no need to panic, and people do not have to worry as old notes of these denominations will remain legal tender. He also added that the Rs.10 and Rs.20 coins are legal tender and will remain to be so. Larger denomination coins such as Rs.10 and Rs.20 often get caught in rumours, and people stop accepting them. Mahesh said that banks have enough money supply, and all banks and departments should accept them as payment. There is no need to pay heed to the rumours.
The new Rs.100 note
In 2019, RBI had issued a new design of Rs.100 note in lavender colour with Rani ki Vav – a stepwell on the banks of the Saraswati River in Patan, Gujarat, on the back. The new currency note is smaller in size, and the banks had to reconfigure their machines to provide customers with fresh currency notes. At that time, RBI had said that the old notes would remain legal tender.
The banks were instructed to reconfigure their ATMs to accommodate the new design of the currency notes, but many ATMs are still configured according to the old notes. In the meeting, AGM mentioned the problem and again instructed the banks to reconfigure all machines at the earliest.
Clarification from PIB
In a tweet, the Press Information Bureau said that the reports suggesting Rs.100, Rs.10 and Rs.5 notes will be out of circulation is fake. RBI has not made any such announcement.
एक खबर में दावा किया जा रहा है कि आरबीआई द्वारा दी गई जानकारी के अनुसार मार्च 2021 के बाद 5, 10 और 100 रुपए के पुराने नोट नहीं चलेंगे।#PIBFactCheck: यह दावा #फ़र्ज़ी है। @RBI ने ऐसी कोई घोषणा नहीं की है। pic.twitter.com/WiuRd2q9V3
— PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) January 24, 2021
Therefore, the old series of Rs.100, Rs.10 and Rs.5 are NOT going out of circulation in March-April. They will remain legal tender.
