ATM dispenses ‘fake’ Rs 2,000 note in Sitamarhi

PATNA: Amid the hullabaloo over demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 banknotes, one Pankaj Kumar (42), a farmer and resident of Lagma village in Sitamarhi district, complained of receiving a “fake” Rs 2,000 note from an ATM of State Bank of India (SBI) at Simra village under Dumara police station in the district. The note appeared like a polished photocopy of the original one.Pankaj told TOI on Tuesday that when he handed over the currency note to a person on Sunday, he refused to accept it saying the note was fake. “I lodged a written complaint with the bank on Tuesday,” he added. Pankaj has also lodged a complaint with Dumra police station. SHO of Dumra PS Vijay Bahdur Singh said a probe had been ordered into the complaint. Sudhanshu Kumar Rao, chief manager SBI main branch in Sitamarhi, said the ATM kiosk from where Pankaj withdrew the Rs 2,000 note was outsourced to a private firm. “The currencies inside the ATM vault will be checked by the bank officials in presence of officials of the private firm,” Rao said, adding that the ATM kiosk has been sealed for the time being.Rao, however, ruled out the possibility of the ATM dispensing fake notes. “It seems someone has fooled Pankaj by exchanging his original currency note with a fake one. However. We have taken note of Pankaj’s complaint and launched an inquiry,” he added.Sources said the SBI ATM at Simra was filled with Rs 14 lakh in Rs 2,000 banknotes by a private agency on December 6.