Fake Rs 500 Notes Witness Sharp Rise After Rs 2,000 Notes Pulled Out
The rise in fake Rs 500 notes coincides directly with the fake Rs 2,000 notes following their withdrawal from circulation
Counterfeit Rs 500 notes have surged sharply in 2024–25, a year after the Rs 2,000 denomination was withdrawn from circulation, according to data from the Ministry of Finance’s Department of Economic Affairs.
Detections of fake Rs 500 notes from the new Mahatma Gandhi series rose to 1,17,722 pieces in 2024–25, compared with 85,711 in 2023–24 and 91,110 in 2022–23. The Rs 500 note has now become the most counterfeited denomination in the country.
This spike followed a steep fall in fake Rs 2,000 notes, which had spiked during the withdrawal period. Counterfeit Rs 2,000 notes increased from 9,806 in 2022–23 to 26,035 in 2023–24, before dropping sharply to 3,508 in 2024–25. The pattern indicates that counterfeiters have shifted their focus from the discontinued Rs 2,000 to the more widely used Rs 500 note.
Lower denominations presented mixed trends. Fake Rs 100 notes declined from 1,10,736 in 2020–21 to 51,069 in 2024–25, while fake Rs 200 notes increased from 24,245 to 32,660 during the same period.
Overall detections of counterfeit currency across all denominations fell slightly from 2,30,971 in 2021–22 to 2,17,396 in 2024–25. However, the new-series Rs 500 note now dominates the counterfeit landscape, while the old Mahatma Gandhi series Rs 500 has nearly disappeared — with only five pieces detected in 2024–25.
The Finance Ministry said that, in consultation with the Reserve Bank of India, it regularly reviews banknote security features under Section 25 of the RBI Act, 1934. The ministry added that introducing new designs and security upgrades is an ongoing process to stay ahead of counterfeiters.
