ROSHNI Chakravartty
The Indian rupee is more than just a medium of payment. It is a traveller, a storyteller, and an integral part of the evolution of India's economic history. From ancient coinage in silver to modern digital money transfer, each avatar of the rupee has shaped and molded the way our nation saves, spends, and grows.
Let us delve into the life of a rupee.
Where it all Began
The rupee traces its origins to ancient India, where there were early coins of precious metal described by the term rūpya, meaning “shaped silver.” It was in the 16th century that Sher Shah Suri introduced the rupiya, the ancestor of today’s currency.
It was during the British period that the modern rupee, as we know it, started taking shape. In the 19th century, paper money was introduced. After independence, the rupee underwent several reforms. India adopted the decimal system where the complicated system of annas, pice, and pies was replaced by 100 paise equalling 1 rupee.
Designs That Tell a Story
Every rupee note tells a story-from motifs of the country's rich cultural heritage, symbols of progress to those of satellites, farmers, wildlife, and iconic landmarks-the designs are reflective of what the nation aspires for. The Mahatma Gandhi Series introduced in 1996 gave the rupee a unified, familiar look that lasted decades.
In 2010, India adopted the ₹ symbol of its currency, a blend between Devanagari "र" and Roman "R," signifying tradition and global identity.
Source: Business Standard (16.04.2009)
A Personal Connection to the ₹ Symbol
This piece of history feels especially meaningful to us at Kishor Barta, because our editor, Rajat Baran Chakravartty, once took part in the nationwide contest to design India’s official rupee symbol. At the time, he was working as the Art Director at Business Standard. The newspaper clipping you see here features his design, which appears in the centre, published along with other shortlisted concepts from across the country. His symbol stood remarkably close in style and thought to the one that was eventually selected. It’s a reminder that every great national symbol begins as an idea in someone’s mind and that young people are meant to dream boldly and play a role in shaping India’s identity.
Birth of a Rupee Note
While the concept of the rupee is centuries old, every rupee note that one holds begins its life's journey at one of India's high-security printing presses at Nashik, Dewas, Salboni, or Mysore. At these presses, special cotton-based paper, watermarks, security threads, colour-shifting inks, and microprinting come together to ensure authenticity. Freshly printed sheets are then cut, checked, counted, packed, and locked inside secure vaults.
Birth of a Rupee Coin
Coins are a different story altogether in their birth. India's coins are struck at four government mints: Mumbai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, and Noida. Coins are made out of metal alloys such as stainless steel. Sheets of metal are cut into round blanks, cleaned, and then pressed between dies to give them their complete shape with inscriptions, symbols, and patterns. Each coin is tested for weight, hardness, and accuracy before it actually can be called legal tender.
A Visit to the Reserve Bank
While the notes go to the printing presses of RBI, the coins go to the RBI from the mints. Both are stored in currency chests before entering public circulation. These chests are backstage storerooms in which notes and coins wait before entering the real world.
Entrance into Circulation
Banks are the intermediaries between the RBI and the public. Notes are filled in the ATM or issued at counters. Coins are supplied in bags and dispensed to shops, banks, and customers. It is here that a rupee, paper or metal starts active life. It might buy snacks, ride in the conductor's pouch in a bus or sit in a piggy bank.
The Middle Life: Busy, Fast, and Sometimes Messy
A rupee note leads a busy life. Moving between hands and cities and markets and wallets, along the way getting folded or scribbled on or even washed inside a pair of denims.
A coin, on the other hand, is robust and resilient. It rolls across counters, sits in vending machines, falls under car seats, jingles in jars, and can withstand years and years of use. More often than not, coins outlive notes because metal can bear heat, moisture, and rough handling. Whereas banknotes only last a couple of years, if that, coins usually last decades.
Time for Health Check
When these notes come back to the banks, advanced sorting machines study their condition. Depending on their health, they are sorted into three categories. Fit notes (clean and perfect) are put back into reuse. Soiled notes (a bit worn out but still usable) circulate a little longer, while unfit notes (torn or damaged) start the final chapter in the journey of a note.
Coins are checked, too. Any that are bent, rusted, or otherwise badly damaged are removed and returned to the mints.
The Final Goodbye
Inside RBI's shredding rooms, the unfit notes are destroyed with special machines. Sometimes, the shredded pieces are compressed or recycled. Similarly, damaged coins are melted down to make new metal blanks.
Once the old money is retired, new ones get printed or minted in order to keep the ongoing cycle of the rupee.
Rupee in the Digital Era
Besides notes and coins, the rupee lives in the digital world: UPI, online banking, e-wallets, and the digital rupee (e₹) have transformed the way money moves. As these digital payments continue to surge, cash and coins still remain a vital part of the daily lives of millions of people.
The journey of the rupee mirrors the journey of our country, full of movement, change, and growth. Understanding its life cycle helps us use it more responsibly, ensuring that every rupee continues to serve us well.