The Union Finance Ministry on Monday, December 12, informed the Lok Sabha that the banknotes of Rs 2000 denomination in terms of value to the total notes in circulation (NiC) dipped from 22.6 percent (March 31, 2020) to 13.8 percent at the end of March 31, 2022. In a written reply, the finance minister said the share of Rs 500 denomination banknotes, in terms of total NiC increased from 29.7 percent at the end of March 31, 2000, to 73.3 percent at the end of March 31, 2022.
According to RBI annual report released in May earlier this year said, "At the end of March 2020, the number of Rs 2000 denomination notes in circulation stood at 274 crore, accounting for 2.4 percent of the total number of currency notes in circulation. The count declined to 245 crore or 2 percent of the total banknotes in circulation as of March 2021 and further fell to 214 crore or 1.6 percent at the end of last fiscal year."
According to the report, the number of Rs 500 denomination notes in circulation rose to 4,554.68 crore at the end of March this year against 3,867.90 crore in the year-ago period. "In volume terms, Rs 500 denomination constituted the highest share at 34.9 percent, followed by Rs 10 denomination bank notes, which constituted 21.3 percent of the total banknotes in circulation as on March 31, 2022," the annual report for 2021-22 said.
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The Rs 500 denomination notes accounted for 31.1 percent share at the end of March 2021 and 25.4 percent as of March 2020. In value terms, these notes rose from 60.8 percent to 73.3 percent from March 2020 to March 2022. The total value of currency notes in circulation of all denominations rose to Rs 31.05 lakh crore at the end of March this year from Rs 28.27 lakh crore at the end of March 2021. The value and volume of banknotes in circulation increased by 9.9 percent and 5 percent, respectively, during 2021-22 compared to 16.8 percent and 7.2 percent, respectively, during 2020-21," the report said.
The currency in circulation (CiC) includes banknotes and coins. At present, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issues banknotes in denominations of Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs 10, Rs 20, Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 200, Rs 500, and Rs 2000. Coins in circulation comprise 50 paise and Re 1, Rs 2, Rs 5, Rs 10, and Rs 20 denominations.
