History of the rupee
The history of the rupee traces back to ancient times in the Indian subcontinent. The mention of rūpya by Pāṇini is seemingly the earliest reference in a text about coins.[2] The term in Indian subcontinent was used for referring to a coin.[3]
The word "rupee" is derived from a Sanskrit word "rūpya", which means "wrought silver", and maybe also something stamped with an image or a coin.[4] As an adjective it means "shapely", with a more specific meaning of "stamped, impressed", whence "coin". It is derived from the noun rūpa "shape, likeness, image".[citation needed]
Arthashastra, written by Chanakya, prime minister to the first Maurya emperor Chandragupta Maurya (c. 340–290 BC), mentions silver coins as rūpyarūpa, other types including gold coins (suvarṇarūpa), copper coins (tāmrarūpa) and lead coins (sīsarūpa) are mentioned [This claim is disputed]. Rūpa means form or shape, example, rūpyarūpa, rūpya – wrought silver, rūpa – form.[1]
In the intermediate times there was no fixed monetary system as reported by the Great Tang Records on the Western Regions.[5]
The Mughal rulers issued coins honouring the Hindu deities in 1604–1605.The coins depicting Ram and Sita were issued in both silver and gold; minting ended right after Akbar's death in 1605.
The silver coin remained in use during the
The Indian rupee was a silver-based currency during much of the 19th century, which had severe consequences on the standard value of the currency, as stronger economies were on the
For many years in the early and mid-20th century, the Indian rupee was the official currency in several areas that were controlled by the British and governed from India; areas such as East Africa, Southern
Early uses
The word "rupee" is derived from a Sanskrit word "rūpya", which means "wrought silver", and maybe also something stamped with an image or a coin.[4] As an adjective it means "shapely", with a more specific meaning of "stamped, impressed", whence "coin". It is derived from the noun rūpa "rupa in sanskrit means silver".[citation needed]
Pāṇini used rūpya to mean beautiful or stamped (ahāta). The second meaning applies to a coin.[8] Kasikakara expands upon this, these coins that stamped were the Dinara, Kedara and Karshapana. The term Rupataraka is mentioned by Patanjali in reference to one who checks the Karshapana coins. An early Pali scripture uses the term Mashaka-rupa, Mashaka being a token Karshapana. The term was no longer in much use to refer to a coin in later eras. In the Rajatarangini, the term rupakas is used for gold coins, they are called svarna-rupakas. The Kathasaritsagara calls the gold Dinar coins svarna-rupakas.[3]
Arthashastra, written by Chanakya, prime minister to the first Maurya emperor Chandragupta Maurya (c. 340–290 BC), mentions silver coins as rūpyarūpa, other types of coins including gold coins (suvarṇarūpa), copper coins (tāmrarūpa) and lead coins (sīsarūpa) are also mentioned. Rūpa means form or shape, example, rūpyarūpa, rūpya – wrought silver, rūpa – form.[1]
In the intermediate times there is no fixed monetary system as reported by the Da Tang Xi Yu Ji.[5]
During his five-year rule from 1540 to 1546,
Coinage since the British period
The British settlements in Western India,
Indian rupee featuring bust of George V. | |
---|---|
Obverse: Profile of George V surrounded by his name. | Reverse: Face value, country and date. |
Made of 91.7% silver. |
There are many fake coins of East India Company, with Indian gods depicted on the obverse side as shown in side-bar. Original East India Company coins show only the coat of arms of the East India Company.
The coins of Bengal were developed in the
The 1911 accession to the throne of the King-Emperor
Acute shortage of silver during the First World War, led to the introduction of paper currency of one rupee and two and a half rupees. The silver coins of smaller denominations were issued in cupro-nickel. The Second World War led to experiments in coinage where the standard rupee was replaced by the "Quaternary Silver Alloy". The Quaternary Silver coins were issued from 1940. In 1947 these were replaced by pure Nickel coins.
Immediately after independence, the British coinage was continued. The monetary system remained unchanged at One Rupee consisting of 64 pice, or 192 pies.
The "Anna Series" was introduced on 15 August 1950. This was the first coinage of the Republic of India. The King's image was replaced by the Ashoka's Lion Capital. A corn sheaf replaced the tiger on the one rupee coin. The monetary system was retained with one rupee consisting of 16 Annas. The 1955 Indian Coinage (Amendment) Act, that came into force with effect from 1 April 1957, introduced a "Decimal series". The rupee was now divided into 100 'Paisa' instead of 16 Annas or 64 Pice. The "Naye Paise" coins were minted in the denominations of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 Naye Paise. Both the Anna series and the Naye Paise coins were valid for some time. From 1968 onward, the new coins were called just Paise instead of Naye Paise because they were no longer 'naye' (English = new).
With high inflation in the sixties, small denomination coins which had been made from bronze, nickel-brass, cupro-nickel, and aluminium-bronze were gradually minted in aluminium. This change commenced with the introduction of the new hexagonal 3 paise coin. A twenty paise coin was introduced in 1968 but did not gain much popularity.
Over a period, cost-benefit considerations led to the gradual discontinuance of 1, 2 and 3 paise coins in the 1970s. Stainless steel coinage of 10, 25 and 50 paise was introduced in 1988 and of one rupee in 1992. The very considerable costs of managing note issues of ₹1, ₹2, and ₹5 led to the gradual replacement of notes by coins for these denominations in the 1990s.
During the World War II, Subhas Chandra Bose led Indian National Army (INA) liberated Mizoram, Manipur and parts of Nagaland from the colonial British control with the help of Japanese forces, British Indian rupee was banned and Japanese rupee (1942–44) was introduced.[9]
Since 1947
Since its Independence in 1947, Indian rupee was adopted as currency in the nation. During this period almost till mid 1960's Indian rupee was also a legal tender in Trucial States, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait.[10]
Decimalisation (1950's)
History of Indian Rupee (₹):[11]
Dates | Currency system |
---|---|
1850–1957 | Rupee = 16 annas = 64 pices = 192 pies |
From 1 April 1957 to 31 May 1964 | 1₹ = 100 naye paise |
From 1 June 1964 till today | 1₹ = 100 paise |
The price of 16 Annas was 1 rupee in 1947. The demand for decimalization existed for over a century. Sri Lanka decimalised its rupee in 1869. The Indian Coinage Act was amended in September 1955 for the adoption of a decimal system for coinage. The Act came into force with effect from 1 April 1957.
1966 Economic crisis
Indian currency began with a devaluation in 1949 due to devaluation of Pound sterling. However since India's trade was largely in Pound sterling it did not register much impact like the two major devaluations of the rupee: In 1966 and 1991 in the face of economic crisis.[13]
From 1950, India ran continued trade deficits that increased in magnitude in the 1960s. Furthermore, the Government of India had a budget deficit problem and could not borrow money from abroad or from the private corporate sector, due to that sector's negative savings rate. As a result, the government issued bonds to the RBI, what increased the money supply, leading to inflation. In 1966, foreign aid, which had hitherto been a key factor in preventing devaluation of the rupee, was finally cut off and India was told it had to liberalise its restrictions on trade before foreign aid would again materialize. The response was the politically unpopular step of devaluation accompanied by
At the end of 1969, the Indian Rupee was trading at around 13 British pre-decimal pence (1s 1d). A decade later, by 1979, it was trading at around 6 British new pence (6p). Finally, by the end of 1989, the Indian Rupee had plunged to a then-all-time low of about four British pence (4p). This triggered a wave of irreversible liberalisation reforms away from populist measures.
Post Bretton Woods (1970's)
Reserve Bank of India and Government of India adopted multiple adjustments to Indian rupee following the Nixon shock of 1971 and Smithsonian Agreement.[14] The currency gradually shifted from Par value system to pegged system and to basket peg by 1975.[15]
1991 Economic crisis
In 1991, India still had a fixed exchange system, where the rupee was pegged to the value of a basket of currencies of major trading partners. India started having the balance of payments problems since 1985, and by the end of 1990, it found itself in serious
At the end of 1999, the Indian Rupee was devalued considerably.
Revaluation (2000's)
In the period between 2000 and 2007, the Rupee stopped declining and stabilised ranging between 1$ = ₹44– ₹48. In late 2007, the Indian Rupee reached a record high of 39 Indian national rupee per United States dollars, on account of sustained foreign investment flows into the country. This posed problems for major exporters, IT and BPO firms located in the country who were incurring losses in their earnings given the appreciation in rupee. The trend reversed with the 2008 world financial crisis as Foreign investors transferred huge sums out to their own countries. Such appreciations were reflected in many currencies, e.g. the British sterling pounds, which had gained value against the dollar and then has lost value again with the recession of 2008.
2013 Depreciation
Due to stagnant reforms, and declining foreign investment, rupee started depreciating in the early 2013.[16] Measures were announced by the government before this drop to prevent it from dropping further, but none managed to slow down the depreciation.[17] After continued depreciation, and high inflation, the then Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh, made a statement in the Parliament of India on the issue. He was of the view that, the present depreciation is partly led by global factors as well as domestic factors. He also asked the political parties to help his Government, tide over the crisis that the country was facing with rupee losing its value.[18]
2016 Demonetisation
2016 saw the discontinuation of ₹500 and ₹1,000 notes due to the 2016 Indian bank note demonetisation and consequently the introduction of new a ₹500 note, and a ₹2,000 note- a first for the currency. Later on, new notes of old denominations viz. ₹10, ₹20, ₹50 and ₹100 were issued with old notes of the same value still being legal tender. A ₹200 note, also a first for the Indian Rupee, is currently in circulation.
2023 Currency recall
In May 2023, the Reserve Bank of India started withdrawing the ₹2,000 notes from circulation.[19][20] The ₹2,000 bank note which was introduced in 2016 however, will remain in legal tender until September 2023 according to RBI. One among the main reason of removing it from circulation is the low rate of its use to the Indian current market economy[21] and its printing was stopped as of 2018 - 2019.[20]
Banknotes
Early paper issues
Notes issued by the
- Unifaced series: The early notes of the Bank of Bengal were printed only on one side and were issued as one gold mohur and in denominations of ₹100, ₹250, ₹500, etc.
- Commerce series: Later notes had a vignette representing an allegorical female figure personifying 'commerce'. The notes were printed on both sides. On the obverse the name of the bank and the denominations were printed in three scripts, viz., (Urdu, Bengali and Devanagari). On the reverse of such notes was printed a cartouche with ornamentation carrying the name of the Bank.
- Britannia series: By the late 19th century, the motif 'commerce' was replaced by 'Britannia'. The new banknotes had more features to prevent forgery.
British India issues
The Paper Currency Act,1861 gave the Government the monopoly of note issue throughout the vast expanse of British India, which was a considerable task. Eventually, the management of paper currency was entrusted to the Mint Masters, the Accountant Generals and the Controller of Currency.
- Victoria portrait series: The first set of British India notes were the 'VictoriaPortrait' series issued in denominations of ₹10, ₹20, ₹50, ₹100 and ₹1,000. These were unifaced, carried two language panels. The security features incorporated the watermark, the printed signature and the registration of the notes.
- Underprint series: The unifaced Underprint series was introduced in 1867 as the Victoria Portrait series was withdrawn in the wake of a spate of forgeries. These notes were issued in denominations of ₹5, ₹10, ₹20, ₹50, ₹100, ₹500, ₹1,000 and ₹10,000.
- George V series: A series carrying the portrait of George Vwere introduced in 1923, and was continued as an integral feature of all paper money issues of British India. These notes were issued in denominations of ₹1, ₹2+1⁄2, ₹5, ₹10, ₹50, ₹100, ₹1,000, and ₹10,000.
Reserve Bank issues during British India
The Reserve Bank of India was formally inaugurated on Monday, 1 April 1935 with its Central Office at Calcutta. Section 22 of the RBI Act, 1934, empowered it to continue issuing Government of India notes until its own notes were ready for issue. The bank issued the first five rupee note bearing the portrait of
Republic of India issues
Following the
The first "Mahatma Gandhi Series" was introduced in 1996. Prominent new features included a changed watermark, windowed security thread, latent image and intaglio features for the visually handicapped.
The
Valuation history
The rupee was never equal to the dollar. At the time of independence (in 1947), India's currency was pegged to pound sterling, and the exchange rate was a shilling and six pence for a rupee — which worked out to ₹13.33 to the pound.[23] The dollar-pound exchange rate then was $4.03 to the pound, which in effect gave a rupee-dollar rate in 1947 of around ₹3.30.[24][25] The pound was devalued in 1949, changing its parity from 4.03 to 2.80. India was then a part of the sterling area, and the rupee was devalued on the same day by the same percentage so that the new dollar exchange rate in 1949 became ₹4.76 — which is where it stayed till the rupee devaluation of 1966 made it ₹7.50 to the dollar and the pound moved to ₹21.[26][27]
Year | Exchange rate (₹ per $) |
---|---|
1947 | 3.30[24] |
1949 | 4.76[26] |
1966 | 7.50[27] |
1975 | 8.39[28] |
1980 | 6.61[29] |
1985 | 12.38[29] |
1990 | 17.01[29] |
1995 (Jan) | 37.69[30] |
2000 (Jan) | 44.31[29] |
2005 (Jan) | 43.50[29] |
2006 (Jan) | 46.92 [29] |
2007 (Jan) | 49.32 [29] |
2008 (Jan) | 43.30[30] |
2009 (1 Jan) | 48.82[30] |
2010 (January) | 46.02[30] |
2011 (1 Jan) | 44.65 [31] |
2012 (1 Jan) | 53.06 [32] |
2013 (1 Jan) | 54.78 [33] |
2014 (1 Jan) | 61.86 [34] |
2014 (15 May) | 59.44 [35] |
2014 (12 Sep) | 60.95[36] |
2015 (15 Apr) | 62.30[37] |
2015 (15 May) | 64.22[30] |
2015 (19 Sep) | 65.87[30] |
2015 (30 Nov) | 66.79[30] |
2016 (20 Jan) | 68.01[30] |
2016 (25 Jan) | 67.63[30] |
2016 (25 Feb) | 68.82[30] |
2016 (14 April) | 66.56[30] |
2016 (22 Sep) | 67.02[30] |
2016 (24 Nov) | 67.63[30] |
2017 (28 Mar) | 65.04[30] |
2017 (28 April) | 64.27[30] |
2017 (15 May) | 64.05[30] |
2017 (14 August) | 64.13[30] |
2017 (24 October) | 64.94 [38] |
2018 (9 May) | 64.80[30] |
2018 (5 Oct) | 74.09[30] |
2018 (9 Oct) | 74.35[30] |
2018 (22 Oct) | 73.66[30] |
2018 (13 Nov) | 72.56[30] |
2018 (4 Dec) | 70.64[39] |
2019 (6 Jan) | 69.53[30] |
2019 (12 Jan) | 70.37[39] |
2019 (1 Feb) | 71.44[40] |
2019 (10 July) | 68.37[41] |
2019 (13 Nov) | 72.15[42] |
2020 (15 Jan) | 70.72[43] |
2020 (6 March) | 74.00[44] |
2020 (21 April) | 76.97[44] |
2020 (5 Nov) | 74.31[45] |
2021 (14 April) | 75.07[46] |
2021 (22 May) | 72.91[47] |
2021 (12 June) | 73.23[48] |
2021 (5 August) | 74.18[49] |
2021 (7 December) | 75.45[50] |
2022 (5 July) | 79.27[51] |
2022 (18 July) | 80.03[52] |
2022 (17 November) | 81.62[53] |
2023 (8 january) | 82.52[54] |
Other issues
In Mozambique the British India rupees were overstamped, and in Kenya the British East Africa company minted the rupee and its fractions as well as pice. It was maintained as the florin, using the same standard, until 1920. In Somalia the Italian colonial authority minted 'Rupia' to exactly the same standard, and called the paisa 'besa'. Early 18th-century E.I.C. rupees were used in Australia for a limited period.
- Jammu and Kashmir issues: Maharaja Ranbir Singh introduced paper money on watermarked paper in 1877. The notes were not very popular and were in circulation for a very short period. The notes carried the 'Sun' motif of the Dografamily.
- Hyderabad issues: The Government of Nasik, Hyderabad notes came to be printed there.
- Burma issues: Burma separated from India in 1938; however, the Reserve Bank of India acted as Banker to the Government of Burmaand was responsible for note issue in terms of the Burma Monetary Arrangements Order, 1937. In May 1938 the Bank issued Burma notes which were not legal tender in India.
- Indo-French issues: The French Indian rupee (FIR) was introduced by France's Bank of Indochina in French colonies of India.
- Indo-Portuguese issues : The Portuguese Indian Rupia was the currency of Portuguese Indian Escudo, at the rate of 1 Rupia for 6 Escudos.
- Persian Gulf issues: For many years in the early and mid-20th century, the Indian rupee was the official currency in several areas that were controlled by the British and governed from India: areas such as East Africa, Southern Indian Rupee for circulation exclusively outside the country with the Reserve Bank of India Amendment Act, 1 May 1959. After India devalued the rupee in June 1966, those countries still using it – Oman, Qatar and what is now the United Arab Emirates (known as the Trucial States until 1971) – replaced the Gulf Rupee with their own currencies. Kuwait and Bahrainhad already done so in 1961 and 1965 respectively.
- Emergency issues, Princely states: During the 1940s, when mints were occupied for use in the war, an acute scarcity of small coins was felt throughout India. Princely states in Western India like Sayla, Vithalgadh, issued "Cash Coupons" to meet the shortage.
-
Government of India 5 Rupee note (1858)
-
Hyderabad State OS Rupee 100 issue
-
Five rupees, 1922
-
Portuguese Indian 1 rupee, 1924
-
French Indian 1 rupee, 1938
-
George VI profile portrait, RBI, 1937
-
One rupee, British India
-
George VI profile portrait changed to frontal portrait, RBI, 1943
See also
References
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- ISBN 9781107171718.
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- ^ a b Trübner's Oriental Series DA TANG XIYU JI Great Tang Dynasty Records of the Western World, translated by Samuel Beal TWO VOLUMES Kegan, Paul, Trench, Teubner & Co. London • 1906 [First Edition ‐ London • 1884]
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- ^ Doctor, Vikram. "The forgotten anniversary of decimalisation". The Economic Times. Retrieved 25 April 2022.
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- ^ External factors led to rupee fall, reduce hunger for gold: PM. YouTube (30 August 2013). Retrieved on 1 December 2017.
- ^ "Rs 2,000 notes withdrawn from circulation, RBI says will remain legal tender". India Today. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ a b Jain, Aashika (25 May 2023). "Why Has RBI Withdrawn INR 2000 Notes From Circulation". Forbes Advisor INDIA. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ "What India's Removal of 2,000 Rupee Notes Means for the Economy?". Bloomberg.com. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
- ^ Spotlight (8 November 2016), [English]PM Modi's Surgical Strike on Corruption | 500,1000 Rupee Notes Not Legal Tender Anymore, retrieved 8 November 2016 – via YouTube
- ^ "Dispelling Myths about India's Finances post Independence". Nirmal Ghorawat's Blog. 23 January 2017.
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- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 16 August 2022.
- ^ [1] Exchange Rates
- ^ "USD to INR Rates on 1/01/2012". Exchange Rates. 1 January 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ^ "USD to INR Rates on 1/01/2013". Exchange Rates. 15 May 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
- ^ [2] Exchange Rates|date= 1 Jan 2014
- ^ "USD to INR Rates on 15-May-2014". Exchange Rates. 15 May 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
- ^ "USD to INR Rates on 12-Sep-2014". Exchange Rates. 12 September 2014. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
- ^ "USD to INR Rates on 15-Apr-2015". Exchange Rates. 15 April 2015. Retrieved 15 April 2015.
- ^ Tabassum, Huma (13 August 2017). "Rupee Rebounds 17 Paise Against US Dollar". News18.
- ^ a b "US Dollar (USD) to Indian Rupee (INR) exchange rate history". www.exchangerates.org.uk. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 1 February 2019.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 10 July 2019.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Spot Exchange Rates for 2019". www.exchangerates.org.uk. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 15 January 2020.
- ^ a b "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Spot Exchange Rates for 2020". www.exchangerates.org.uk. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate 5-Nov-2020". Retrieved 11 May 2020.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate 14-Apr-2021". Retrieved 14 April 2021.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate 22-May-2021". Retrieved 22 May 2021.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate 12-June-2021". Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 5 August 2021.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 7 December 2021.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 5 July 2022.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 18 July 2022.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate". Retrieved 17 October 2022.
- ^ "US Dollar to Indian Rupee Exchange Rate".