Over Rs 55L in counterfeit currency seized since Jan

new delhi: It's becoming very difficult to detect counterfeit currency, say experts. What you find floating in the market looks quite genuine and is very difficult to detect. "Counterfeit currency these days is near-perfect and can baffle even the most seasoned expert. It looks, feels and seems exactly like the genuine one,'' says Dr SC Mittal, former principal scientific officer at CFSL, CBI, Lodhi Colony, and assistant chemical examiner with the Government of India.
A senior RBI official agrees, saying that after they received some complaints, samples of some dubious notes were sent to the CBI for a complete forensic analysis."We, however, are in no position to ascertain how many fake notes are in circulation in the country at present,'' he says.
Police figures show that the racket in Delhi alone is quite big. This year, since January, more than Rs 55 lakh worth of counterfeit currency has been recovered. In 2008, this amount had touched Rs 59 lakh while in 2007 the figure was much higher due to a spate of raids by the special cell on ISI modules. The notes which are faked the most are of Rs 500 denomination followed by Rs 100.
"The authenticity of a note can be ascertained from some basic features. Firstly, the water marks must be checked on every note. These include a portrait of Mahatma Gandhi inside the window on the left side of the note which is visible when seen under light. Secondly, there are three lines on each side of the note right next to the window, which, when seen in light, form the denomination of the note without any gaps,'' said Dr Mittal.
In old notes, this is replaced by a perfectly aligned brown and white flower on both sides; the denomination is in the extreme left corner of the window, right under the Gandhi picture, which is visible against light.
For the Rs 1000 note, one should look out for `1k' written inside a circle in the window above Gandhi Ji's picture with the crayon test, said Mittal. (see graphic)
Fake notes have more sheen and a darker window on the left side. Under UV light, the security thread of genuine notes becomes deep flourescent yellow while in forged notes it becomes bluish in colour and the number printed on the panel also does not glow. The number in the panel is also not written in proper alignment in fake notes.
A lot of this counterfeit currency has its origins in Pakistan which has the access to the same kind of special paper that is used to make notes. "Currency paper is made of 100% cotton fibre which is produced only in Hoshangabad in MP in India. It can, however, cater to only 25% of the total demand for that paper. We import the rest from a company in UK which sells the paper to all the other countries too. This makes the paper available to everyone. Also, we have four printing presses in Nasik, Devas, Mysore and Salbony in West Bengal where these notes are printed. While transporting the paper from Hoshangabad to these far-off places, you are putting it at risk of being stolen,'' said Mittal.
Possession of counterfeit currency is an offence. It is punishable by 10 years to life imprisonment and a fine.