Ever since the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the withdrawal of Rs 2000 notes from circulation, rumor mills have been working overtime with speculations about Rs 500 notes. There have also been murmurs of the central bank planning to re-introduce Rs 1000 notes.
However, RBI has clarified all such rumours. Addressing the post-MPC press conference on Thursday (June 8), RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said that people should not speculate on the withdrawal or re-introduction of currency notes. “The central bank is not thinking of withdrawing Rs 500 notes or re-introducing Rs 1,000 notes,” he said.
Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Thursday said that nearly 50 per cent of Rs 2,000 notes in circulation have returned to the banking system since the RBI announced the withdrawal of the highest denomination currency last month. He said that Rs 2,000 notes worth Rs 3.62 lakh crore were in circulation as on March 31, 2023.
Talking to the media after releasing the bi-monthly monetary policy, he said, “Rs 1.80 lakh crore has been returned so far after the announcement.” He said that around 85 per cent of the Rs 2,000 notes are coming in the form of deposits in bank accounts and this is as expected.
On 19 May, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes as part of its currency management and allowed exchange of such notes (up to Rs 20,000 at a time) from 23 May . The exchange or deposit window is available till September 30, 2023.