RBI extends deadline to exchange pre-2005 currency notes to Dec 31

Rs 100 note to come with numerals in ascending size in number panels

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the deadline to exchange pre-2005 currency notes to December 31. Last year in December, RBI had extended the deadline to June 30.

The central bank has urged people to give the pre-2005 notes at banks and has also clarified that all such notes continue to remain legal tender.

“Banknotes in the Mahatma Gandhi series have now been in circulation for a decade. A majority of the old banknotes have been withdrawn through bank branches. It has, therefore, decided to withdraw the remaining old design notes from circulation. Not having currency notes in multiple series in circulation at the same time is a standard international practice,” said RBI for the rationale behind the move. Apart from this, the regulator has also introduced an enhanced security feature on currency notes of Rs 100 denomination. These will come with numerals in ascending size in the number panels.

The numerals in both the number panels of these banknotes will be in ascending size from left to right, while the first three alphanumeric characters (prefix) will remain constant in size, RBI said. This has been done to curb fake notes in circulation.

“Printing the numerals in ascending size is a visible security feature in the banknotes, so that the general public can easily distinguish a counterfeit note from a genuine one,” RBI said.