RBI to Pilot Polymer ₹10 and ₹20 Banknotes; Paper Currency to Continue Alongside
RBI to Pilot Polymer ₹10 and ₹20 Banknotes; Paper Currency to Continue Alongside
New Delhi, July 28: India is set to take its first step towards introducing polymer banknotes after the Central Government approved a Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposal to conduct pilot trials of ₹10 and ₹20 notes made from plastic substrate. The announcement was made by Minister of State for Finance Pankaj Chaudhary in a written reply in the Lok Sabha.
As part of the pilot project, one billion ₹10 notes and one billion ₹20 notes made from polymer will be introduced into circulation on a trial basis. The field tests are intended to evaluate the performance of the new banknotes under real-world conditions before any decision is taken on wider adoption.
The RBI said the primary objective of introducing polymer notes is to improve the durability of currency. International studies have shown that polymer banknotes last significantly longer than conventional cotton-based paper notes, which could help reduce replacement costs and lower printing requirements over time.
The field trials will assess how the polymer notes perform under India's diverse climatic conditions, frequent handling, and everyday wear and tear before the central bank decides on their future use.
The RBI also stated that it is too early to assess whether the introduction of polymer notes will have any impact on digital payment systems. Such an evaluation can only be made after the notes are introduced on a larger scale and become widely used.
The central bank emphasised that physical currency and digital payment systems are complementary modes of payment, and both will continue to coexist to serve the diverse needs of the public.
[RBI, Polymer Banknotes, ₹10 Note, ₹20 Note, Plastic Currency, India Currency]
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