RBI Cleared Note Ban Only 3 Hours Before Modi’s 8 November Speech

The RBI did not respond to queries on how many new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes were being printed every day.

The Reserve Bank of India approved the note ban only hours before the announcement. (Photo: The Quint)

The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) board approved the demonetisation move less than three hours before it was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 8 November, Bloomberg News reported.

The central bank released the information to the publication under the Right to Information Act. The decision to demonetise currency notes of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 was taken at a board meeting at 5:30 pm on 8 November, the RBI said in its responses.

The bank further said that they did not have the number of members who favoured or opposed the move “on record”.

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On 16 December, Power Minister Piyush Goyal asserted that the note ban was ideated by the apex bank’s 10-member committee.

The board comprises the Governor, his three deputies – R Gandhi, SS Mundra and NS Vishwanathan – and several other prominent people, including Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das.

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The bank, however, did not answer questions about the number of new Rs 2,000 and Rs 500 notes that were being printed every day. The RBI also failed to disclose the number of hours each day the printing presses were working in the month leading up to the 8 November announcement.

Source: Bloomberg