37% spike in fake Rs 500 notes, 1.12L found in FY25: RBI tells Parl panel

A high-level parliamentary panel was informed on Thursday by RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra that 1.12 lakh pieces of currency notes of Rs 500 denomination out of the total over 6 crore pieces were found to be fake during 2024-25.

Malhotra, who deposed before the Lok Sabha’s parliamentary panel on finance over the issue of the banking regulator’s evolving role in India’s dynamic economy, is said to have further informed the panel headed by BJP MP Bhartruhari Mahtab that though the Rs 2,000 denomination notes are now out of circulation, these have not been invalidated.

The RBI chief reiterated the facts from the central bank’s annual report for 2024-25, according to which counterfeit currency notes of Rs 500 denomination rose over 37 per cent on a yearly basis to 1.18 lakh pieces during 2024-25 in the banking system. In 2023-24, Rs 500 denomination counterfeit notes had stood at 85,711 pieces.

The other denominations where fake currency notes were found included Rs 100 (51,069 pieces), Rs 200 (32,660 pieces), and Rs 2,000 (3,508 pieces) in 2024-25, as per the report released in May. Despite this, the overall fake notes detected in 2024-25 slightly decreased compared to 2023-24, standing at 2.18 lakh pieces against 2.23 lakh pieces the previous year.

During the parliamentary panel’s meeting, several issues were discussed, with opposition members questioning contradictions in the RBI’s role. Congress MP Manish Tewari suggested that the RBI should focus on its core activity of regulating banks and a few select areas, avoiding multiple roles that could lead to conflicts of interest.

Another key discussion point was the declining number of banking correspondents in rural areas due to technological advancements. Members expressed concern that inadequate internet access and lack of modern gadgets like laptops for rural banking correspondents had significantly reduced their numbers in recent years.

MPs also urged the RBI Governor to focus on monitoring ombudsmen of banks across various states in addition to overseeing its own ombudsman.

India