Although officially a mere Rs 10 crore worth of fake currency was seized across the country in 2007, this amount is only the tip of the iceberg. Even conservative estimates put the amount of fake currency in use at several hundreds of crores in the country. Disturbingly, the latest crop of fake notes are so well forged that even investigators trained to detect them find it hard to differentiate them from the real currency. Printed in sophisticated presses across India’s western and eastern borders, this money is entering India through a myriad of air, land and sea routes.

Investigations reveal that jihadi outfits located across the borders have emerged as principal carriers of fake currency into India. Not surprisingly, security officials agree that a large amount of this currency is funding terror networks in the country — apart from aiding drug trafficking and smuggling of arms and explosives.

Blocking funds for terrorists is a critical step in combating their spread — curbing the spread of fake currency in the country should be the first step in this direction. RBI advisories are therefore a good beginning, but we should be ready to take drastic steps — even if it means replacing the entire existing supply of high-value notes with a new type having the best security features.

The writer is a Congress MP in Rajya Sabha