-Brian Mendonca
Depiction of Hampi on reverse of Rs. 50 note, Davangere.
Rs. 50 note received at Davangere.
Reverse of fake Rs. 50 note.
Front of fake Rs 50 note (619693)
It feels good to be in Hampi country. Hampi is a world heritage site in North Karnataka. I have often wanted to visit it, but it has not happened yet. I was delighted to see it on the reverse of a Rs. 50 note in Davangere while travelling inward into Karnataka from Goa yesterday. (Photo at the top)
This a welcome concept when a state can promote its tourism through its currency. It is also true that the further one gets from Karnataka the lesser the prevalence of the Hampi notes.
Imagine my surprise when Abbas refused to take the Rs. 50 note (619683, bottom) I offered him to pay for my delectable dosa 0n the VSG-YPR train at Davangere. 'Yeh note nali heh.' he said matter-of-factly. I had no choice but to ferret out some loose notes of Rs. 20 and Rs.10 to settle the payment.
Fortified by the delicious dosa, I opted for another. Just in case in felt hungry. Since I was travelling. Abbas said he noticed I had taken the second dosa. He was very pleased. That was when I asked him to show me why my note was fake.
'Look' he said in Hindi. 'See the surface. It is smooth.' I felt the surface of the note. It was smooth. Too smooth. The fingers practically slid off the paper. 'Feel the paper.' 'Patla heh,' True, the paper was thin. Way too thin. 'Check the line,' he urged pulling out an original note to compare it with. The line was the silver-coloured machine readable security thread which runs from top to bottom in the centre of the note. There was no security thread.
Intrigued, I set about trying to see what else I could discover on my own. I felt the lettering of Reserve Bank of India was too baroque on the fake note. The original lettering was more staid.
A news reportnews in May this year observed a steady rise in the number of counterfeit notes in circulation, The rise was studied as follows: Rs.10 notes (16.4%); Rs. 20 (16.5); Rs. 200 (11.7%); Rs. 500 (101.9%) and Rs. 2000 (54.6 %). Thus, the greater the value the more the fake notes in circulation. The malaise is so widespread that there is even an acronym coined for fake Indian currency notes (FICN). There is a national level database using IT for reporting and recording FICN by the National Crime Records Bureau. (NCRB)
I am thankful for the fleeting encounter with Abbas. Selling his dosas he taught me more than I could learn from anyone else.
Now I have started collecting Rs. 50 notes to add to the museum in my purse.
(Written in Mathura Central lodge, Shimoga, Karnataka)
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