Centre issues alert over high-quality counterfeit ₹500 notes

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued an alert, based on intelligence inputs, informing all financial regulatory and enforcement institutions, as well as banks dealing in cash, about “high-quality counterfeit Rs 500 currency notes” that have entered circulation.

The MHA has also pointed to a difference between the fake and genuine notes, stating that, a “spelling error” in the phrase “RESERVE BANK OF INDIA” has crept in, with a typo in which the letter ‘A’ appears in place of ‘E’.

Terming the alert as “high importance”, officials said communications have been shared with key financial and regulatory bodies such as the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), National Investigation Agency (NIA), Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), and others including banks, to caution them that the fake notes closely resemble genuine ones in quality and print, making detection more difficult—except for the misspelling of “RSERVE BANK OF INDIA.”

But the spelling error is “very subtle”, and it might as well escape notice. Oofficials said institutions handling currency have been asked to remain on high alert, as intelligence reports suggest counterfeit notes may already have entered the market. A photograph of the suspected counterfeit currency has also been circulated to aid identification, they added.