Reports of missing Rs 500 notes based on erroneous information, says RBI

Following these claims, the central bank has urged the public to rely on the information published by itself in cases pertaining to such matters

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Saturday issued a clarification that reports related to missing Rs 500 notes are inaccurate and based on an erroneous interpretation of information obtained under the Right to Information Act (RTI), 2005 from the printing presses.

Media reports citing RBI said that certain sections of the media circulated the reports which alleged the disappearance of the bank notes printed by banknote printing presses. The central bank, however, has now denied these reports and said that all banknotes supplied from the printing presses to the RBI are properly accounted for.

It further stated that systems are in place to reconcile the banknotes printed at the presses and supplied to the central bank, which includes protocols to monitor production, storage, and distribution.

Following these claims, the central bank has urged the public to rely on information published by itself in cases pertaining to such matters.

News reports earlier claimed that while the mints issued 8,810.65 million pieces of the newly designed Rs 500 note, the RBI had only received 7,260 million. 

These reports were based on responses to an RTI query filed by activist Manoranjan Roy. The data obtained via RTI claimed that 375.450 million pieces of the newly designed Rs 500 note were printed by the Currency Note Press, Nashik. However, the central bank records indicate that only 345.000 million pieces were received between April 2015 and December 2016.

Citing RBI's annual report 2022-2023, the media reports stated that the share of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes in circulation accounted for 87.9 per cent in value terms of the total circulation as on March 31, 2023.

Further, it stated that in terms of value, Rs 500 denomination constituted the highest share at 37.9 per cent, followed by Rs 10 denomination at 19.2 per cent of the total banknotes.