ISLAMABAD – The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has sought approval to discontinue the Rs10 currency note and replace it with a coin, a Senate committee was informed on Tuesday.
State Bank Deputy Governor Dr Inayat Hussain briefed the Senate Standing Committee on Finance on plans concerning the issuance of new currency notes.
He said the SBP had requested that the Rs10 note be discontinued. The denomination would no longer be printed when the new banknotes are issued, with a Rs10 coin introduced in its place.
According to the deputy governor, the rising cost of producing the Rs10 banknote was a key factor behind the decision.
The briefing was given at a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance chaired by Senator Saleem Mandviwalla.
The committee was informed that the design of the new banknotes proposed by the central bank had been rejected by a committee headed by the finance minister.
Dr Inayat said suggestions made by the committee were being incorporated, including recommendations for new security features and changes to the designs.
However, an executive director of the central bank said the introduction of new banknotes would not completely eliminate the circulation of counterfeit currency.
According to central bank officials, counterfeit Rs1,000 and Rs5,000 notes are currently the most widely circulated fake denominations.
Senator Saleem Mandviwalla claimed that counterfeit currency was also being dispensed through banks and ATMs. He said the circulation of fake notes had increased to such an extent that shopkeepers were now reluctant to accept Rs1,000 and Rs5,000 notes.
The SBP deputy governor, however, said Pakistan had a relatively lower circulation of counterfeit currency compared with other countries.
Mandviwalla said the current currency series had started being printed in 2005 and that a completely new series of banknotes would now be introduced.
He further said an agreement had been signed with a consultant’s company to design the new currency notes.
The committee chairman also raised concerns about payments related to the currency redesign project, saying the SBP owed the consultant Rs15,000 and had not made the payment for two years.
Mandviwalla said the central bank had been given three banknotes two years ago, but they had still not been returned.
