Death of the Rs 2,000 note: Here’s the timeline of the banknote from 2016 to 2023

Hyderabad: The Rs. 2,000 banknote was taken out of circulation on 19 May, however, it will still be accepted as legal money.

Here’s the timeline of this currency note from its introduction in 2016:

Introduction of the note

Following the demonetisation of Rs. 500 and 1,000 banknotes on 8 November 2016, the new Rs. 2,000 note was issued by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and has been in use ever since. It is a part of the new Mahatma Gandhi New Series of banknotes.

Since the demonetisation, this is the biggest denomination currency note that the RBI has produced and that is currently in use. Prior to the RBI’s formal declaration, the media claimed that by the end of October 2016, 2,000 notes had been produced by the Mysuru currency printing facility.

Reason for the introduction

The Rs. 2,000 note was produced as a temporary solution to ensure adequate money circulation.

In light of the unexpected withdrawal of the Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 notes as part of the demonetisation push, it was released to satisfy the monetary needs of the Indian economy.

At the end of March 2017, 3,285.87 million Rs. 2,000 notes were in circulation, according to figures from the RBI. There was just a little rise in the quantity at 3,363.28 million pieces a year later (on 31 March 2018). Rs. 2,000 notes made up 37.3% of the 18,037 billion yen in circulation at the end of March 2018, down from 50.2% at the end of March 2017.

Why did the printing stop?

The Indian government and the RBI removed Rs. 2,000 notes from circulation in favour of lesser denominations that are now in use.

The RBI ceased producing banknotes of the Rs. 2,000 denomination under the pretext that these notes are being used for hoarding and tax evasion, and no new notes of this denomination were created from the 2019–20 fiscal year.

The Central bank stated in its statement that “the goal of launching Rs. 2,000 banknotes was realised after banknotes in other denominations became sufficiently accessible. So, in 2018–19, the production of Rs. 2,000 banknotes were suspended.”

What are the key features of the note?

The Rs. 2,000 note, which is 66 mm by 166 mm in size and is printed in the colour magenta, has a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi and the Ashoka Pillar insignia on the front and a Mangalyaan motif and the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan logo on the reverse. For the benefit of people who are blind or visually impaired, it includes Braille writing on it.

The demise of the note

There was a noticeable decline in the use of the Rs. 2,000 notes over time. The RBI noted that the value of all in-use Rs. 2,000 notes peaked at Rs. 6.73 lakh crores in March 2018 and declined to Rs. 3.62 lakh crores by March 2023.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) made the unexpected announcement that the Rs. 2,000 notes will no longer be legal tender and that holders should deposit and exchange them for lesser denominations of money by 30 September 2023. The Rs. 2,000 notes would still be accepted as legal money beyond 30 September, according to the Central bank, which made this clarification.