Bank notes: RBI considers other noteworthy icons
Hemali Chhapia, TNN | Jun 17, 2012, 03.31AM IST
MUMBAI: The Reserve Bank of India is considering suggestions from people across all walks of life to put Indian luminaries other than M K Gandhi on our currency notes. Among the recommendations are Dr B R Ambedkar, Chhatrapati Shivaji, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi.
As Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi enjoys a privileged place in every sphere of our lives. Cities, colonies, roads, schools, colleges, universities — you name it and he is there, a reminder of the sacrifices he made for our countryand the ingenious way in which he earned India its Independence.
But if there's one area in which the Mahatma has had a monopoly, it's our currency notes. He has been smiling at us — one section believes that given his ascetic lifestyle, he wouldn't have cared much to be on the notes— from 1987 when he first made his appearance on a Rs 500 note. From 1996, he has been on all the denominations.
Ironically, before the Mahatma, the Ashoka Pillar used to be the most dominant feature on banknotes. RTI activist Manoranjan Roy tried to find out how and when the Mahatma took pride of place, but he drew a blank, with the RBI telling him that no document recorded the change.
"The recommendation to print the image of Mahatma Gandhi on the watermark/banknotes was made by the Central Board of RBI in 1993 which was later approved by the Government of India," an RBI spokesperson said.Roy felt that the RBI wasn't doing justice to a country as diverse as India by not showcasing anything else on its currency bills. Dilip Rajgor, a scholar and the author of several books on numismatics, agreed. "India is home to several monuments, dance forms, religions, great scientists. Why are we not considering them on our coins and notes?" he asked.
In fact, Rajgor rued that the RBI didn't have any numismatist on the board that approved the design of coins and notes. "Some African countries have Mahatma Gandhi's image on their coins; others have the Taj Mahal; Nepal has the Buddha on some coins," he added.
But RBI's ex-governor Bimal Jalan says printing a particular leader's image is decided by the sentiments of the respective nations or states and India is no exception.
Source: Times of India
_________________________________________________________________________________
The Reserve Bank of India is reportedly considering a move to commemorate several more leaders and politicians by having them join Mahatma Gandhi, Father of the Nation, on currency notes
According to a report in the Time of India, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is working on plans to added leaders such as Dr BR Ambedkar, Chhattrapati Shivaji, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi as faces on currency notes along with Mahatma Gandhi. Is this a good move? Or will it only unleash a storm of jousting and lobbying by politicians about precisely which leader is accorded the honour? Experience already shows how politicians cynically manipulate public sentiment for petty publicity when it comes to naming or renaming states, cities, streets, roads, universities and public infrastructure. Do we want this to extend this to our currency notes?
More importantly, do we have an a transparent set of rules and regulations to decide the design and images on currency notes and to ensure that the issue of new currency does not lead to an increase in counterfeiting which is already rampant with regard to the Rs500 note?
Moneylife decided to check for public opinion on this issue through activists and the social media. The overwhelming reaction was that the design of India's currency should not become a political football field and that it would be best to keep all politicians and religious symbols away from the notes and stock to national emblems.
RTI activist, Subhash Agrawal set the ball rolling by saying, "The RBI move will create more problems with every politician demanding photo of his/her mentor or guardian printed on the currency. It can also be misused by the ruling party to glorify their leader(s) according to political requirements. Everybody will lobby for inclusion on currency notes. Any further idea of glorification of personalities including through currency notes should be dumped forever to avoid controversies. It is a problem best avoided."
Former ICICI Bank CEO, PV Maiya says the answer to the issue is provided with remarkable foresight by BR Ambedkar in his last speech to the Constituent Assembly in November 1949. He said:
"The second thing we must do is to observe the caution which John Stuart Mill has given to all who are interested in the maintenance of democracy, namely, not 'to lay their liberties at the feet of even a great man, or to trust him with powers which enable him to subvert their institutions.' There is nothing wrong in being grateful to great men who have rendered life-long services to the country. But there are limits to gratefulness. As has been well said by the Irish Patriot Daniel O'Connell, 'no man can be grateful at the cost of his honour, no woman can be grateful at the cost of her chastity and no nation can be grateful at the-cost of its liberty'. This caution is far more necessary in the case of India than in the case of any other country, for in India, Bhakti or what may be called the path of devotion or hero-worship, plays a part in its politics unequalled in magnitude by the part it plays in the politics of any other country in the world. Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship".
Ironically, by including BR Ambedkar among those sought to be commemorated on currency, the worthies at the RBI seem to have forgotten this.
Interestingly, the issue of confusion and acrimony over honours and symbolism involved in who features on currency notes becomes a problem only in democratic regimes, where politicians are almost obliged to play to their constituencies. Yet, most developed country democracies have managed to keep their currency free of such bickering.
The US for instance, has barely a handful of its presidents on the country's currency notes. And it has only stuck to presidents. So far, the US has had George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln, to name a few. In India, Mahatma Gandhi did not hold public office but is by far our most revered leader. Moreover, the president of India is the first citizen but it is the prime minister who is the power-centre. This in itself creates a recipe for problems, the minute the RBI decides to have more personalities on our currency.
We would also do well to remember that the RBI has already caused plenty of confusion in the coins it has been minting. Citizens of India find it very difficult to differentiate between 50 paise, Re1 and Rs2 coins (one particular earlier Rs2 model was criticised as the visually impaired could not identify it). Worse, the RBI has remained remarkably impervious to public criticism about the size and design of its coins despite plenty of feedback over the past two decades. If non-political coinage is subject to such opaqueness, how much worse will it get when paper currency is open to political machinations?
Nagesh Kini, a chartered accountant and social activist quips, "We have 33 crore gods and goddesses, we now attempt to glorify our innumerable sundry netas, mantris-shantris by designating them as governors and ambassadors and now into our currencies." So far, all the coins have the emblem of the Ashoka Pillar, which stands for peace and non-violence. This is featured in currency notes as well. Currently, the only personality gracing our currency notes is Mahatma Gandhi. These are the emblems that an average Indian is able to identify with.
Sudhir Badami, a civil engineer and transportation analyst, opines, "We are one nation with several regional leaders and aspirations each having respective avenues for expressions and fulfilment. The Indian currency must depict the concept of India and Bharat. India is one and this is a concept that cannot be challenged. The Reserve Bank should continue to adhere to the basic principles of currency representing the concept of India as it has been doing."
Prevailing systems like erecting statues of political leaders has invited a lot of trouble in the past, and are usually taken without consulting opposing political parties or without coming to a consensus.
Source: MoneyLife
As Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi enjoys a privileged place in every sphere of our lives. Cities, colonies, roads, schools, colleges, universities — you name it and he is there, a reminder of the sacrifices he made for our countryand the ingenious way in which he earned India its Independence.
But if there's one area in which the Mahatma has had a monopoly, it's our currency notes. He has been smiling at us — one section believes that given his ascetic lifestyle, he wouldn't have cared much to be on the notes— from 1987 when he first made his appearance on a Rs 500 note. From 1996, he has been on all the denominations.
Ironically, before the Mahatma, the Ashoka Pillar used to be the most dominant feature on banknotes. RTI activist Manoranjan Roy tried to find out how and when the Mahatma took pride of place, but he drew a blank, with the RBI telling him that no document recorded the change.
"The recommendation to print the image of Mahatma Gandhi on the watermark/banknotes was made by the Central Board of RBI in 1993 which was later approved by the Government of India," an RBI spokesperson said.Roy felt that the RBI wasn't doing justice to a country as diverse as India by not showcasing anything else on its currency bills. Dilip Rajgor, a scholar and the author of several books on numismatics, agreed. "India is home to several monuments, dance forms, religions, great scientists. Why are we not considering them on our coins and notes?" he asked.
In fact, Rajgor rued that the RBI didn't have any numismatist on the board that approved the design of coins and notes. "Some African countries have Mahatma Gandhi's image on their coins; others have the Taj Mahal; Nepal has the Buddha on some coins," he added.
But RBI's ex-governor Bimal Jalan says printing a particular leader's image is decided by the sentiments of the respective nations or states and India is no exception.
Source: Times of India
_________________________________________________________________________________
RBI move to have more political leaders on currency notes can trigger needless acrimony
The Reserve Bank of India is reportedly considering a move to commemorate several more leaders and politicians by having them join Mahatma Gandhi, Father of the Nation, on currency notes
According to a report in the Time of India, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is working on plans to added leaders such as Dr BR Ambedkar, Chhattrapati Shivaji, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi as faces on currency notes along with Mahatma Gandhi. Is this a good move? Or will it only unleash a storm of jousting and lobbying by politicians about precisely which leader is accorded the honour? Experience already shows how politicians cynically manipulate public sentiment for petty publicity when it comes to naming or renaming states, cities, streets, roads, universities and public infrastructure. Do we want this to extend this to our currency notes?
More importantly, do we have an a transparent set of rules and regulations to decide the design and images on currency notes and to ensure that the issue of new currency does not lead to an increase in counterfeiting which is already rampant with regard to the Rs500 note?
Moneylife decided to check for public opinion on this issue through activists and the social media. The overwhelming reaction was that the design of India's currency should not become a political football field and that it would be best to keep all politicians and religious symbols away from the notes and stock to national emblems.
RTI activist, Subhash Agrawal set the ball rolling by saying, "The RBI move will create more problems with every politician demanding photo of his/her mentor or guardian printed on the currency. It can also be misused by the ruling party to glorify their leader(s) according to political requirements. Everybody will lobby for inclusion on currency notes. Any further idea of glorification of personalities including through currency notes should be dumped forever to avoid controversies. It is a problem best avoided."
Former ICICI Bank CEO, PV Maiya says the answer to the issue is provided with remarkable foresight by BR Ambedkar in his last speech to the Constituent Assembly in November 1949. He said:
"The second thing we must do is to observe the caution which John Stuart Mill has given to all who are interested in the maintenance of democracy, namely, not 'to lay their liberties at the feet of even a great man, or to trust him with powers which enable him to subvert their institutions.' There is nothing wrong in being grateful to great men who have rendered life-long services to the country. But there are limits to gratefulness. As has been well said by the Irish Patriot Daniel O'Connell, 'no man can be grateful at the cost of his honour, no woman can be grateful at the cost of her chastity and no nation can be grateful at the-cost of its liberty'. This caution is far more necessary in the case of India than in the case of any other country, for in India, Bhakti or what may be called the path of devotion or hero-worship, plays a part in its politics unequalled in magnitude by the part it plays in the politics of any other country in the world. Bhakti in religion may be a road to the salvation of the soul. But in politics, Bhakti or hero-worship is a sure road to degradation and to eventual dictatorship".
Ironically, by including BR Ambedkar among those sought to be commemorated on currency, the worthies at the RBI seem to have forgotten this.
Interestingly, the issue of confusion and acrimony over honours and symbolism involved in who features on currency notes becomes a problem only in democratic regimes, where politicians are almost obliged to play to their constituencies. Yet, most developed country democracies have managed to keep their currency free of such bickering.
The US for instance, has barely a handful of its presidents on the country's currency notes. And it has only stuck to presidents. So far, the US has had George Washington, Benjamin Franklin and Abraham Lincoln, to name a few. In India, Mahatma Gandhi did not hold public office but is by far our most revered leader. Moreover, the president of India is the first citizen but it is the prime minister who is the power-centre. This in itself creates a recipe for problems, the minute the RBI decides to have more personalities on our currency.
We would also do well to remember that the RBI has already caused plenty of confusion in the coins it has been minting. Citizens of India find it very difficult to differentiate between 50 paise, Re1 and Rs2 coins (one particular earlier Rs2 model was criticised as the visually impaired could not identify it). Worse, the RBI has remained remarkably impervious to public criticism about the size and design of its coins despite plenty of feedback over the past two decades. If non-political coinage is subject to such opaqueness, how much worse will it get when paper currency is open to political machinations?
Nagesh Kini, a chartered accountant and social activist quips, "We have 33 crore gods and goddesses, we now attempt to glorify our innumerable sundry netas, mantris-shantris by designating them as governors and ambassadors and now into our currencies." So far, all the coins have the emblem of the Ashoka Pillar, which stands for peace and non-violence. This is featured in currency notes as well. Currently, the only personality gracing our currency notes is Mahatma Gandhi. These are the emblems that an average Indian is able to identify with.
Sudhir Badami, a civil engineer and transportation analyst, opines, "We are one nation with several regional leaders and aspirations each having respective avenues for expressions and fulfilment. The Indian currency must depict the concept of India and Bharat. India is one and this is a concept that cannot be challenged. The Reserve Bank should continue to adhere to the basic principles of currency representing the concept of India as it has been doing."
Prevailing systems like erecting statues of political leaders has invited a lot of trouble in the past, and are usually taken without consulting opposing political parties or without coming to a consensus.
Source: MoneyLife
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