Two separate gangs, including three juveniles, were arrested on Tuesday for allegedly printing and circulating <keyword id="66352" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="fake-Indian-currency">fake Indian currency</keyword> notes, police said. The counterfeit notes with a face value of Rs 17.77 lakh were seized from them, the police said. On information that some people were printing and circulating the fake currency, police teams laid traps and caught the gang members from different places, city police commissioner Anjani Kumar said. In one case, nine members of the gang, including three juveniles in conflict with law, were caught and the fake currency with a face value of Rs 9.27 lakh was seized from them. The gang was believed to have printed and circulated the notes of Rs 200 and Rs 100 denomination from Sangareddy town, the police said adding the accused watched videos online about printing of fake notes, purchased scanner-cum-colour printing machines and indulged in the racket. In the other case, four members of a gang were held and fake notes with a face value of Rs 8.5 lakh (in denomination of Rs 2,000 and Rs 500) and printing materials were seized from them, the police said.

Fake currency racket printing ₹100 and ₹200 notes busted in Hyderabad

<img class="gwt-Image" src="/photo/47881418.cms" /> 
Every time one reads about the fake currency racket, the first picture that comes to our mind is the old bulgy shopkeeper taking our five hundred rupee note and putting it against the light, scanning it well with his golden spectacled eyes, before putting it in the drawer. More often than not the thought did cross our mind in those two minutes, “What if the note was fake?”
 But did you know that <keyword id="30067" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="100" keywordseo="RBI">RBI</keyword> has embedded nine security features on all the Indian banknotes to demark ‘real’ notes from the ‘fake’ ones? Know all about how to save yourself from being bluffed by the pros in the field. 

	1. Watermark: The Mahatma Gandhi Series of banknotes contain the <keyword id="2927056" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Mahatma-Gandhi-watermark">Mahatma Gandhi watermark</keyword> with a light and shade effect and multi-directional lines in the watermark window. One can see it by tilting it against the light. 

	2. Security thread: Rs. 1000 notes contain a readable, windowed security thread alternately visible on the obverse with the inscriptions ‘Bharat’ (in Hindi), ‘1000’ and ‘RBI’, but totally embedded on the reverse. The Rs.500 and Rs.100 notes have a security thread with similar visible features and inscription ‘Bharat’ (in Hindi), and ‘RBI’. When held against the light, the security thread on Rs.1000, Rs.500 and Rs.100 can be seen as one continuous line. 
 

	The Rs.5, Rs.10, Rs.20 and Rs.50 notes contain a readable, fully embedded windowed security thread with the inscription ‘Bharat’ (in Hindi), and ‘RBI’. The security thread appears to the left of the Mahatma's portrait.

	 

	3. Latent Image: On the obverse side of Rs.1000, Rs.500, Rs.100, Rs.50 and Rs.20 notes, a vertical band on the right side of the Mahatma Gandhi’s portrait contains a latent image showing the respective value in numeral. The latent image is visible only when the note is held horizontally at eye level.

	 

	4. Microlettering: This feature appears between the vertical band and Mahatma Gandhi portrait. 

	It contains the word ‘RBI’. This feature can be seen well under a magnifying glass.

	 

	5. Intaglio Printing: The portrait of Mahatma Gandhi, the Reserve Bank seal, guarantee and promise clause, Ashoka Pillar Emblem on the left, RBI Governor's signature are printed in intaglio that is in raised prints, which can be felt by touch, in Rs.20, Rs.50, Rs.100, Rs.500 and Rs.1000 notes.

	 

	6. Identification mark: A special feature in intaglio has been introduced on the left of the watermark window on all notes except Rs.10/- note, for the visually impaired to identify the denomination. This feature is in different shapes for various denominations (Rs. 20-Vertical Rectangle, Rs.50-Square, Rs.100-Triangle, Rs.500-Circle, Rs.1000-Diamond).

	 

	7. Fluorescence: Number panels of the notes are printed in fluorescent ink. The notes also have optical fibres. Both can be seen when the notes are exposed to ultra-violet lamp.

	 

	8. Optically Variable Ink: This is a new security feature incorporated in the Rs.1000 and Rs.500 notes with revised colour scheme introduced in November 2000. The numeral 1000 and 500 on the obverse of Rs.1000 and Rs.500 notes respectively is printed in optically variable ink viz., a colour-shifting ink. The colour of the numeral 1000/500 appears green when the note is held flat but would change to blue when the note is held at an angle.

	 

	9. See through Register: The small floral design printed both on the front (hollow) and back (filled up) of the note in the middle of the vertical band next to the Watermark has an accurate back to back registration. The design will appear as one floral design when seen against the light.

	 

	Here is a little note which alerts the citizens about the legal provisions of counterfeiting, as issued by RBI.

	Printing and circulation of forged notes are offences under Sections 489A to 489E of the Indian Penal Code and are punishable in the courts of law by fine or imprisonment or both.
 

	So, next time you take a note from anyone, make sure you take a while to check the security features to save yourself from that dreaded moment of embarrassment in the public forever. 
	 
	(image credits: knowahead.in)

9 ways to identify a fake currency note

Mumbai, Jul 5 () Urjit Patel, whose stint as the head of the central bank was one of the most tumultuous in recent times that ended with the rare event of an RBI Governor resigning, will be releasing a book later this month, his publishers have said. Titled 'Overdraft: Saving the Indian Saver', the book focuses on the non-performing assets (NPAs) issue that has afflicted Indian banking in recent years, its causes and Patel's efforts as the RBI Governor in dealing with it. "Urjit Patel invests his thirty years of macroeconomic experience in building strategies to protect our banks from unscrupulous racketeers, ultimately aimed at saving our savings...," publisher HarperCollins India tweeted. Patel's book description says that sovereigns do not need to earn or save before spending money. They can either print or borrow. "…in our country, where they own banks, they can use our deposits to lend and splurge for goals that may not always be economic in nature. Many rulers have succumbed to the temptation, with dire results - inflation, debased currency, payments crises, bankrupt banks, economic stagnation, loss of public confidence. "After centuries of ruinous experiences, some governments learnt, others haven't, to control themselves, create self-governing Central banks and let them manage money and regulate banks," it says. The issue of unsustainable bad debts started as a trickle in 2015 and then became a "flood", it said. "In the forefront were some of India's largest government banks, and a series of tycoons who were running their empires on unpaid debts." Patel worked with a '9R' strategy which would protect depositors' savings, rescue the banks and protect them from "unscrupulous racketeers", it says. Books or memoirs written by two of his immediate predecessors -- Raghuram Rajan and D Subbarao -- had shed light on various subjects like the RBI's autonomy, interest rates or its stance on demonetisation. Patel, under whose governorship the note ban was carried out, surprised all by resigning from the RBI in December 2018. The resignation came at a time when relations between the government and the RBI had soured, with the former threatening to invoke a never-before used clause to give directions to the central bank. The RBI under Patel was reportedly averse to the government's wishes on getting extra capital held by the central bank, restructuring loans to small businesses and providing liquidity support to the troubled non-bank lenders. Patel's resignation was followed by a long period of absence from public gaze. However last month, in a surprise move, he was appointed as the chairman of the Ministry of Finance-run think-tank NIPFP. Deputy governor Viral Acharya, who gave a strong speech asserting RBI's autonomy and warned the government of the "wrath of markets", also quit ahead of the completion of his term. Patel was seen as very strict on the issue of NPAs and governance at banks, especially the private sector ones, where the RBI replaced the heads of ICICI Bank and Axis Bank, and started probing Yes Bank more closely. The RBI had begun a thorough asset quality review (AQR) to find out the hidden stress on banks' books when Patel was a deputy governor and he carried forward the same work. Patel's book will be released by the end of July, as per a book selling website. AA ABM ABM

Former RBI governor Patel pens book on dealing with NPA issue

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Ever since Internet became a sort of dream platform to sell fantasies, everyone has realized his or her share of ambition varying in scales. While some have made a fortune working hard through ideas and innovation, there are the others who have had it easy; albeit using the shortcuts and creating shams. 
 With the recent investigation into Pakistani company <keyword id="2857610" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Axact">Axact</keyword>, which claims to be a software company at its very core; New York Times has exposed a racket of <keyword id="255962" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="fake-degrees">fake degrees</keyword> and certificate courses that were doled out to millions of candidates more like free candies given away to kids at a village fair. 
 Axact is a destination for many things fake. It is a diploma mill of websites engaging some really smart people into paying up ridiculous sums of money using boiler-room technique. But for those who are unaware, Axact may be a soiled name in the US now, whereas in <keyword id="3001" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Pakistan">Pakistan</keyword> it is a name to reckon by. 
 
In more ways than one, Axact speaks a lot through its own story. It speaks of the aspirations of today’s Pakistan which was left behind in raking the moolah of the surging world of Internet. It could be an irony of times that Pakistan’s immediate neighbor India has turned into a leader of sorts in the world of software and technology. 
 
But, does that leave India clean of the fake degrees issue? The answer is a resounding ‘no’ to the extent of being guilty. India with its surging population, poverty, rapid land acquisition for industrialization, reduced emphasis on skill based livelihoods and agriculture, has become a land of opportunities only for those with higher education. The great Indian middle class thrives on education, and has rightly believed so in the power of education which can transform the lives of people who can access it and possess it. 
 
As a result, probably a first generation graduate finds himself in increasingly pressurizing environment, which does not leave him without any alternative to carving out a career for self by way of acquiring degrees, original or fake. Because, the basic requirement for a job starts with the qualification and not the aptitude of the candidate. 
 
Just recently, a premier institute was told to abstain from publishing ads that claim its authenticity since the organization was not approved by the agency that accredits such educational institutes. Though this is not so much about ‘fake’ degrees, the fate of students who passed out from this institute remains the same as of those who took fake certificates at a premium value. Talk about ambitions gone awry! 
 
Reasons for this are many. The global world is also an equal opportunity employer for want of qualified candidates. And qualified candidates in third-world countries means affordable labour. 
 
Interest in online education is booming and this is exactly what Axact leveraged on. The company has suave websites that can be easily navigated. A physical office is never a prerequisite for such ventures, and potential students are taken completely by how the website looks and what it claims. Is there a way to verify the claims that such websites make? Of course, there should be a contact number which is possibly linked to a 24/7 helpline. 
 
To make the claims sound genuine, they have numerous well-known names on their sites that add ‘authenticity’ to the degree-churning institute. Guess what, one of such websites created by Axact even had US politician John Kerry’s name on it! And as you would know, it could not have been possible to verify if Kerry was really associated or not. Much like celebrity testimonials. But then, the name did the trick of attracting scores of students who paid humungous amounts of money, sometimes the amount even bordering on obscenity when it came to the cost, and obtained stylishly written and printed degrees. After the racket was busted, and Axact’s credentials being questioned, those certificates are much like counterfeit currency notes. They invoke fear and also hopelessness in alternate phases. They are nothing more than fancy pieces of paper. 
 
What about those numbers listed at the bottom of the certificate doling websites which claimed to be associated with international universities? When students called to find out more about the course details, they assumed they were speaking to their professors or those who were credible with their knowledge. In reality, they were speaking to sales and marketing professionals of Axact sitting in their Karachi office! 
 
Axact CEO Shoaib Ahmed Shaikh, who had a steady success is a fallen man today. But, he isn’t taking it lying down. He is putting up a tough fight, and has even had one of the internationally reputed publication remove the news claiming they jumped the gun. 
The racket is bigger than one can even begin to understand. And, by what one can understand, this is not just about selling degree certificates. A country torn at the core owing to terrorism, democracy hanging by a fine thread; Pakistan is much more than a country that desperately wants better future. If Axact can relay that message to its fortune changers, it would be doing more than its share of work. 
 
(Image credits: propakistani.pk)

You Searched For "Indian currency racket" and got 5 results

Fake currency racket printing ₹100 and ₹200 notes busted in Hyderabad

PTI

9 ways to identify a fake currency note

Usha Rani Das

Former RBI governor Patel pens book on dealing with NPA issue

PTI

Fake degrees: Axact is just tip of the iceberg

Preetam Kaushik

Apple's smart photo app will be way behind Google's - here's why

Kif Leswing