NEW DELHI: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI), on Friday, revealed that Rs 2,000 denomination notes amounting to Rs 9,760 crore have not been deposited or exchanged, constituting 2.74 per cent of the total value in circulation as of November 30, 2023.
The central bank had declared the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 notes on May 19, 2023.
As of May 19, the total value of Rs 2000 notes in circulation stood at Rs 3.56 lakh crore, marking a significant decline to Rs 9,760 crore by the end of November. The RBI emphasised that 97.26 per cent of the Rs 2,000 banknotes in circulation as of May 19 have been returned.
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The announcement sheds light on the efforts to phase out the high-denomination notes. The RBI allowed the public to deposit or exchange Rs 2000 banknotes at all bank branches nationwide, with the initial deadline set for September 30, 2023, later extended to October 7, 2023.
“The facility for exchange of the Rs 2,000 banknotes was also available at the 19 Issue Offices of the Reserve Bank (RBI Issue Offices) from May 19, 2023. From October 09, 2023, RBI Issue Offices, in addition to exchanging Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes across the counters, are also accepting Rs 2000 banknotes from individuals/entities for deposit to their bank accounts,” the RBI stated.
These 19 RBI issue offices include: Ahmedabad,Bangalore, Belapur, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna and Thiruvananthapuram
The central bank reiterated that about 2.7 per cent of Rs 2,000 banknotes are still in circulation, even two months after the deposit or exchange deadline passed. The last day for the public to avail of exchange or deposit at bank branches was October 7.
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“The total value of Rs 2,000 banknotes in circulation was Rs 3.56 lakh crore at the close of business on May 19, 2023, the date on which RBI decided to withdraw the banknote. As of November 30, it was at Rs 9,760 crore,” the RBI disclosed.
While emphasising the continued availability of the deposit/exchange window at the 19 RBI issue offices, the RBI clarified that people from within the country can also send Rs 2,000 banknotes through India Post from any post office to any of the RBI Issue Offices for credit to their bank accounts in India.
The decision to withdraw the Rs 2,000 banknote was made in November 2016, intended to meet the currency requirements promptly after the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes.