CBI creating data bank of fake currency notes

NEW DELHI: Aiming to check the menace of forged currency notes, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is creating a national data bank of such currencies. The moves comes after the recent seizure of fake Indian currency notes having a face value of around Rs eight crore.

"We are developing a national data bank of fake currency notes so that it helps in source identification. It will help us trace the origin of the fake notes and the areas in which it has been circulated. The idea is to discourage further printing of fake currencies," a senior CBI official said.

The proposal has been sent to the Planning Commission for approval, sources said. In recent years, mostly Rs 500 denomination notes have been forged. "Forged notes are aimed to introduce terrorrism in the country and subvert the economy," he said.

In the past, it was easy to detect fake currencies as they were printed by people with limited expertise, using crude facilities. But with the forgers attaining a high level of sophistication, it is increasingly difficult to detect such notes.

The forgery is done so well that it is hard to tell which is the real currency. "To an unsuspecting person, the fake currency appears as good as the genuine note," said another official.