RBI extends deadline for withdrawal of pre-2005 currency notes till 30 June 2015

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has extended the deadline for withdrawal of pre-2005 of various denominations including Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 by six months till 30^th June 2015.
RBI also has clarified that all such notes will continue to remain a legal tender and can be exchanged for their full value.
Pre-2005 currency notes:  They do not have the year of printing on the reverse side of note. While the currency notes issued after 2005, have year of printing is visible at the bottom of the reverse side.
Background

• Previously in March 2014, RBI had notified that all currency notes issued prior to 2005 will be withdrawn from circulation and had set a deadline of July 1 for exchanging the notes.
• In this regard, all banks were told to exchange any number of notes for both customers and non-customers.
• After the deadline, banks were notified to exchange the notes only for their customers and non-customers after they furnish proof of identity and residence.
• But this July deadline was extended to 1st January 2015.

Thus by withdrawing all pre-2005 notes, RBI is seeking to curb the menace of fake currency in the country as post-2005 notes have added additional security features.

Month: Current Affairs - December, 2014