People, traders refuse to accept the coin though RBI says it continues to be legal tender

Even as people continue to grapple with the effects of demonetisation, there seems to be another hurdle in carrying out cash transactions. For nearly a week now, traders and public have been rejecting ₹10 coins following rumours that the coins were invalid and, fake coins were being circulated.

Though the Reserve Bank of India had recently clarified that the coins of ₹10 denomination — with and without the rupee symbol - were legal tender and advised public not to believe in rumours, a sense of uncertainty still persists.

A section of shopkeepers in parts of the Fort City pointed out that they are holding back the ₹10 coins as many customers were unwilling to accept them. Some of them have even stopped accepting the coins as there were no takers.

“The rumour has been spreading like wildfire. As far as I know, this started in Vandavasi in this part of the State and spread to Cheyyar nearly a fortnight ago. Now, for the last one week, people in Vellore have been rejecting the coins saying there were two types of the coins, and one without the rupee symbol was fake,” said R.B. Gnanavelu, district secretary of Tamil Nadu Vanigar Sangagalin Peramaippu.

Traders said the markets were abuzz with rumours that the coins were invalid. “Small traders like me are already facing hardship due to demonetisation of ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes. Now, this rumour that the ₹10 coins are invalid and, that one type of coins were fake is adding to our woes. Small traders possess plenty of these coins. Following this rumour, customers are not accepting the coins from me, and as of now, I have ₹3,000 in these coins,” said S. Ramesh Babu, a flower trader.

A. Balu, another trader, said that usually, cash transactions using ₹10 coins are high but the situation has changed in the last one week. “Even if we accept the coins, nobody is ready to take it from us. As a result, these coins are piling up with us,” he said.

A senior bank official in Vellore clarified that there was no move either from the Government of India or Reserve Bank of India to declare the ₹10 coins as invalid. “This is false information and the ₹10 coins are legal tender,” he said.