NEW DELHI: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revealed that over Rs 7,961 crore (about $954 million) worth of 2000-rupee banknotes have not been deposited and still remain in circulation, even after the withdrawal of the high-value denomination from the system.

This represents 2.24 percent of the total Rs 3.56 lakh crore (about $42.6 billion) worth of 2000-rupee notes that were in circulation when the withdrawal was announced on May 19, 2023.

The RBI had initially set a deadline of September 30, 2023 for the public and private entities to either exchange or deposit the 2000-rupee notes.
This deadline was later extended to October 7, 2023. However, many of these high-value notes have not been returned to the banking system.

The 2000-rupee denomination was introduced in November 2016 following the demonetisation of the then-prevailing Rs 1000 and Rs 500 banknotes.
The objective was to meet the currency requirement of the economy expeditiously. However, with the availability of banknotes in other denominations, the printing of 2000-rupee notes was stopped in 2018-19.

The RBI has stated that the 2000-rupee notes will continue to maintain their legal tender status, and the public can continue to use them for transactions.

However, the central bank had encouraged the public to deposit or exchange these notes by the extended deadline of October 7, 2023.
Individuals could exchange the 2000-rupee notes or have the equivalent sum credited to their bank accounts at the 19 RBI offices nationwide.

The RBI has also made provisions for individuals to send the 2000-rupee notes through India Post for credit to their bank accounts.
The withdrawal of the 2000-rupee note is part of the RBI's "Clean Note Policy," which aims to ensure the availability of good quality banknotes to the public.