Rs 10.40-cr seized in 10 yrs; 332 held in 180 cases
BHUBANESWAR: Even as there is an increasing inflow of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) into the country, which the terrorist and criminal gangs are using to fund their criminal activities, a shocking fact has come to light that in the last 10 years, FICN with a face value of Rs 10.4 crore have been seized in Odisha only.
In a bid to tackle the challenge of this new security threat in a coordinated manner, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) had asked the States to step up their drives against FICNs. They were asked to share a copy of the forensic report on the seized and recovered FICNs with the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and the RBI.
The States were also asked to set up a committee headed by the Directors General of Police, with General Managers, Deputy General Managers of the RBI, officers of the intelligence branch and the Criminal Investigation Department of the State police, as members.
An official of the Special Task Force of the Odisha Crime Branch said “So far, 180 cases have been reported in the State and over 322 accused have been arrested. And counterfeit currency notes with a face value of whooping over Rs 10.40 crore were seized from their possession.”
However, fake currency rackets are still mushrooming undeterred despite raids, investigations and subsequent arrests.