News reports about the Reserve Bank of India prepping to release new 200-rupee notes has given an opportunity to WhatsApp hoaxsters and fake news specialists to dust off old pictures and recycle them with fake messages sparking confusion among many.
WhatsApp messages and social media posts like the one below say that the RBI has already issued a new one rupee note and coins of Rs. 20, Rs. 100 and Rs. 150.
A variation of the message also shows a Rs. 1000 coin.
So what's the truth.
- The RBI's website has no recent posts about new currency denominations. (Click here to view its press release section)
2. We used Google's reverse image search and found the exact collage of photos going to back to 2016 in the weeks after demonetisation on November 8, 2016. Even the headlines that say 'NDTV' have dubious URLs, that's because NDTV did not report it.
3. Is the one-rupee note real? Yes.
BOOM found at least two articles from 2015 where the same photos of a pink one rupee note are used. See Chandigarh's Amar Ujala's story - https://www.amarujala.com/photo-gallery/chandigarh/researve-bank-of-india-display-one-rupee-new-note
(Screenshot of Amar Ujala's 2015 story)
And a story on the blog thebetterindia - 6 Interesting Facts About The Newly Re-launched Rupee One Currency Note
According to a May 30, 2017 Press Trust of India story printing of one rupee notes was discontinued in 1994 but relaunched in 2015. - 'RBI to issue new pink-green one rupee notes'
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"New one rupee notes, with predominantly pink-green on the obverse and reverse in combination with other colours, will be soon put into circulation." - PTI
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4. The one-rupee note is legal tender but what about the coins?
Turns out the coins are not legal tender but were issued as commemorative coins much to the delight of coin enthusiasts.
We found this Dec. 2015 post from Mintage World - RBI issues coins of INR 75, INR 150, INR 1000!
Mintage World calls itself an online museum based in Mumbai that caters to numismatists, notaphilists and philatelists.
The 1000 rupee coin was minted to commemorate 1,000 years of the Brihadeeswara temple in Thanjavur, according to a April 2015 article by The Hindu. - 'Of Rs. 1,000 commemorative coins and a shortage of Rs. 5' It is not meant to be used as legal tender.
A 2013 Press Information Bureau (PIB) press release speaks about then Finance Minister P.Chidambaram releasing a commemorative coin of Rs. 20 - https://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=100519