RBI says 99.3% demonetised notes were returned; major points from central bank's annual report

The Reserve Bank of India in its annual report has said Rs 15.31 lakh crore out of the total Rs 15.41 lakh crore demonetised currency have returned to the banking system. The central bank said 99.3 per cent junked notes were deposited in banks, while 0.7 per cent notes worth Rs 10,720 crore couldn't be traced. Critics say the numbers prove that demonetisation was a big failure. PM Modi had scrapped Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes in a surprise announcement on November 8, 2016.

Here are the main points related to demonetisation the RBI has highlighted in its annual report for 2017-18:

1. The value of banknotes in circulation increased by 37.7 per cent over the year to Rs 18.03-lakh crore at end-March 2018. The volume of banknotes, however, increased by 2.1 per cent. This is in sharp contrast to the government's push for digitisation and a less-cash economy.

2. In value terms, the share of Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 banknotes, which together accounted for 72.7 per cent of the total value of banknotes in circulation in March-end 2017, increased to 80.2 per cent in March-end 2018.

3. The after-effects of demonetisation continued in 2017-18 as well. The RBI says the indent for 2017-18 was higher by 9.1 per cent as compared to last year. However, the supply of banknotes was lower than the previous year.

4. During the year, 2,700 crore pieces of banknotes were disposed off as against 1200 crore pieces last year, mainly on account of accelerated processing of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes. The RBI said the humungous task of currency management, including remonetisation, processing and reconciliation, was achieved in record time.

5. One of the aims for demonetisation was to fight the fake currency problem. According to the RBI data, 522,783 pieces of counterfeit notes were detected in the banking system in 2017-18.

6. Of the total fake notes detected, the share of such notes detected by the central bank was higher at 36.1 per cent in 2017-18 as compared to 4.3 per cent during the previous year.

7. The total expenditure incurred on security printing during the FY18 stood at Rs 4,912 crore as against Rs 7,965 crore in 2016-17, says the RBI. The amount was higher in FY17 due to demonetisation, which forced the RBI to print more new notes.

(Edited by Manoj Sharma)