Overall, a total of 2.25 lakh counterfeits were detected during the financial year, compared to 2.30 lakh a year ago. Apart from the sharp increase in demonetized Rs 1000 banknotes, counterfeit notes of newly introduced Rs 500 banknotes also rose sharply, increasing by 14% to 91,110 coins in 2022-23 from 79,669 coins a year ago.
“Compared to the previous year, there was an increase of 8.4% and 14.4% in detected counterfeits in denominations of Rs 20 and Rs 500 (new design), respectively. Counterfeit notes detected in denominations of Rs 10, Rs 100 and Rs 2000 decreased by 11.6%, 14.7% and 27.9%, respectively,” RBI said in its annual report.
Overall, in value, the share of Rs 500 and Rs 2000 banknotes together accounted for 87.9% of the total value of banknotes in circulation in March 2023, slightly higher than the 87.1% a year ago. In terms of volume, the Rs 500 denomination constituted the highest share at 37.9%, followed by the Rs 10 denominations which constituted 19.2% of the total banknotes in circulation in March 2023.
Total expenditure on ticket printing decreased by 6% to Rs 4,683 crore in 2022-23 from Rs 4,985 crore in the previous year. The total number of soiled banknotes disposed of increased by 22% to 2,292.64 crores in 2022-23 from 1,878.01 crores the previous year.
In the current financial year, the RBI will focus on improving the efficiency and effectiveness of ticket distribution and gaining a better understanding of trends in public preference for cash over other payment methods, the central bank said.
