Bank ATMs dispensing counterfeit Rs5,000 notes, says Senate panel

ISLAMABAD: Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue Senator Saleem Mandviwalla has expressed deep concern over the reports that ATMs of the banks were dispensing counterfeit Rs5,000 and Rs1,000 currency notes.

The committee that met under the chairmanship of Mandviwalla has also expressed deep concern over the issue of circulation of counterfeit currency notes in the country.

“There are such sophisticated counterfeit currency notes in the market that no one can differentiate between them and genuine ones,” Mandviwalla said.

The committee chairman said counterfeit Rs1,000 and Rs500 notes were in circulation in the market and posing problems for the common man.

“If a poor person receives counterfeit currency note, all his earnings of the day could be wasted,” he said, adding that workers, including domestic helpers, security guards and others, were reluctant to accept Rs1,000 and Rs500 notes as they feared that these could be fake.

Mandviwalla called for speedy completion of issuance of the new currency notes.

“The biggest tragedy is that counterfeit currency notes are being dispensed by bank ATMs,” he said.

Mandviwalla alleged that banks were not replacing counterfeit notes dispensed from ATMs, and therefore, there was no remedy for the customers.

“If counterfeit notes come out of bank ATMs, then where are the people going to approach?” he asked.

Senator Mandviwalla said that committee had handed over three Rs5,000 currency notes to the deputy governor of the State Bank of Pakistan for identification of counterfeiting a year ago. He said that one of the three notes turned out to be counterfeit but even the deputy governor could not identify it.

He said that State Bank had neither prepared any report on the matter nor returned the notes to the committee.

The deputy governor of the State Bank told the committee that process of issuance of the new currency notes had been started.

He said that government had set up a ministerial committee headed by the finance minister for overseeing the process of designing.

The deputy governor said that State Bank wanted to make sure that there were no objections on the design of the new currency notes as government’s ministerial committee had already approved the design.

Senator Mandviwalla questioned the process of hiring of consultants for the new currency notes.

He said the State Bank had hired a consultant for the design of the notes who would also be involved in the printing process.

“This does not happen anywhere in the world. All details of this tender should be provided,” Mandviwalla said.

Senator Agha Shahzaib Durrani said the State Bank had been working on the new currency notes for two years but had yet to complete the process.

“Two years have passed, but the State Bank has not been able to complete this work,” he said.

The deputy governor said the State Bank was working to ensure that the new notes met the required standards and remained in circulation for a long period.

The committee also sought details of the tendering process and the steps being taken by the State Bank to prevent counterfeit currency from entering circulation through banking channels.