RBI to temporarily stop exchange/ deposit of 2,000 banknotes on Apr 1

This temporary suspension is attributed to operational activities associated with the annual closing of accounts. The service is expected to recommence on Tuesday, April 2, 2024, the RBI said in a statement.

"The facility of exchange/deposit of Rs 2,000 banknotes will not be available on Monday, April 1, 2024, at the 19 issue offices of the Reserve Bank of India due to operations associated with the annual closing of accounts," it said.

Previously, RBI announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 denomination banknotes from circulation on May 19, 2023.

As of February 29, almost 97.62 percent of these banknotes have been returned to the banking system, leaving only around Rs 8,470 crore worth of the withdrawn notes still in public possession.

Individuals possessing Rs 2,000 banknotes have the option to deposit or exchange them at any of the 19 RBI offices located across the country.

They can also choose to send these banknotes via India Post from any post office to any RBI issue office for crediting to their Indian bank accounts.

Initially, both the public and entities holding such notes were required to either exchange or deposit them in bank accounts by September 30, 2023.

However, this deadline was subsequently extended to October 7, 2023. Deposit and exchange services at bank branches ceased on October 7.

Since October 8, 2023, people have been given the choice of either exchanging the currency or having the equivalent amount credited to their bank accounts at the 19 RBI offices.

The 19 RBI offices where the exchange or deposit of the banknotes is allowed are situated in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Belapur, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna, and Thiruvananthapuram.

The Rs 2,000 banknotes were introduced in November 2016, after the demonetisation of the then Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 banknotes.