Nepal on Thursday declared high-denomination Indian currency notes illegal. Information Minister Gokul Prasad Baskota said the government had decided to stop circulation of ₹200, ₹500 and ₹2,000 notes.
The Nepal Rastra Bank had declared during India’s demonetisation exercise that it would not allow circulation of the new ₹500 and ₹2,000 notes in the country.
However, official sources confirmed that the government of Nepal was concerned that people continued to bring the banned Indian currency notes into the country and therefore made a formal announcement.
“Apart from emphasising the earlier position on the Indian ₹500 and ₹2000 notes, the ministerial meeting also added the ₹200 currency bill of India to the list. As per the latest declaration, ₹100 and other lower Indian currency notes will remain valid in Nepal,” said an official source in Kathmandu.
Following demonetisation, India and Nepal had to deal with the issue of old Indian currency notes that remained in private possession in Nepal even though they remained out of circulation in India. This had raised possibility that black money from India could end up in Nepal. Thursday’s decision is expected to impact the workers and business between both sides.
