Coins in the denomination of 25 paise and below will be legally invalid for circulation from June 30.
Addressing presspersons here on Monday, K. R. Ananda, Regional Director, Reserve Bank of India (Tamil Nadu and Puducherry), said the Union Government, which has the responsibility of minting coins, has decided to withdraw smaller denomination coins of and under 25 paise. The value of such coins has eroded and they are no longer in use.
People can exchange coins in denominations of 25, 20, 10 and 5 paise in the issue offices of the RBI and branches of 45 banks for their face value till June 29. A special counter has been opened for accepting such coins in the RBI office between 10 a.m. and 2.30 p.m., he said.
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People have started exchanging from this month and the coins totalling Rs.3,000 are being exchanged daily. “We expect this number to go up,” Mr.Ananda said. On whether the 50 paise coin would also be withdrawn, he said “We only act as agents for distributing coins minted by the government.”
Officials of the RBI said there was no dearth of 50 paise coins and they are available with RBI counters. Only a few Metropolitan Transport Corporation personnel bought the coins in bulk. However, coins of the value of Rs.10 were in short supply.
About the Rs.150 coin released recently on the occasion of Income Tax Department completing 150 years, he said it is yet to reach the regional office.
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G. P. Borah, General Manager, Issue Department, RBI, told The Hindu that the Rs.150 coin is only a commemorative coin and not for circulation. Similarly, a coin of Rs.75 value was released during the platinum jubilee year celebration of the RBI. However, it is not meant for circulation.
The RBI, however, has issued a new one-rupee coin to mark its platinum jubilee. As of now, commemorative coins of denominations under Rs.10 are available for circulation. The RBI also plans to issue coins in denominations of Rs.2, Rs.5 and Rs.10 soon as part of its platinum jubilee celebrations. People may book such commemorative coins on the website of India Government Mint.
Mr.Bohra said the RBI has recently launched an initiative of issuing coins in select bank branches located near nine market areas in the city. The areas include T.Nagar, Koyambedu, Washermenpet, Selaiyur, Thiruvanmiyur and George Town. In the past two months, traders have taken coins worth nearly Rs.2 crore.