No coin shortage: RBI

The logic behind the move, according to unofficial sources, is to prevent the machine from being damaged through extensive use by vendors and hoarders who frequent the bank every morning in search of small change. The official version is that the machine is being redesigned to read notes of various denominations and dispense coins accordingly.

Every morning, the bank is besieged with hordes ofbusinessmen who take away coins worth up to Rs 500 each. The rush for small change has forced the bank to open a separate counter to cater to the public alone. An official claimed that if the machine was installed on the ground floor, there would have been a never ending queue, which would not only affect the working atmosphere in the bank but might also permanently damage the machine. “It is meant to service consumers to the tune of ten rupees, not hundreds,” he remarked.

The machine can dispense ten one rupee coins for every Rs 10 note that it is fed. According to the bank officials, the machine is equipped with special sensors to reject counterfeit or colour copied notes. It was developed by a Mumbai firm Samarth which deals in security systems using Korean technology and has a maximum capacity of 10,000 coins. Based on a concept developed by Rangarajan, the RBI procured the machine for Rs 1.85 lakh. “It works almost like an ATM, but deals with only smaller amounts,” said an official.

The bank hadhoped that once the machine was installed at its office, other public institutions like the railways, airports, bus depots and large departmental stores would take the cue and install it themselves. But no effort has been made so far in that direction with the bank deciding to wait for a more adaptable machine. But the firm has clarified that it may not be possible to have a single machine accepting all denominations of notes.

RBI officials claimed that the shortage of small change in the city is not as acute as it is made out to be, one of the reasons for the delay in the installation of the machine. They disclosed that now that the technology is available soon the machine will be redesigned. “It is a question of adapting the foreign technology to Indian conditions, which will not take long,” the spokesperson added.