The UAE residents will be treated to an exclusive display of 100 different Indian Re1 notes, issued from 1917 to 2016. To commemorate the completion of 100 years since the first Re1 note was issued, Dubai-based numismatics company, Numisbing and International Bank Note Society, Dubai Chapter (IBNS Dubai) are jointly holding the exhibition which will offer visitors a peek into the 100-year journey of the Re1 note.
The exhibition will be held at the Numisbing Gallery in Deira on Maktoum Street from tomorrow (April 28) until May 14, 2017.
The show will be a history lesson of sorts with the currency notes telling the tale, taking viewers through the various epoch-making stages experienced by erstwhile British colonies from the pre-independence upheavals to different post-independence phases and into the modern age.
Viewers will find original notes which were first issued in India in 1917 by King George V, followed by King George VI, proposed Re1 with Mahatma Gandhi’s portrait in 1948, various Issues after independence till 1994, Re1 note for exclusive use in Gulf countries, Burma, Pakistan among others up to the latest 2015 and 2016 Issues.
The exhibits will be accompanied by detailed description and interesting stories behind a few notes.
‘Until 1900s, Re1 denomination in India was issued in coins; however, as the demand for metal shot up during and after the First World War, notes were also introduced and the use of coins was reduced, but never completely eliminated,’ says Ram Kumar, founder of Numisbing and President of IBNS Dubai Chapter. ‘Interestingly, in a reverse situation, the notes were replaced exclusively by coins in 1994 when their printing cost became very high, but was re-introduced in 2015.’
Re1 notes came back in circulation after a gap of nearly 21 years, the new note was similar in design as the old one, but in a slightly different colour. These notes are rarely seen in circulation since the denomination has very little spending value and people prefer to keep it with themselves. ‘Currently the cost of printing a Re1 note is estimated to be Rs1.14, but government is still printing them’ says Steve Desouza, co-founder of Numisbing and secretary of IBNS, Dubai Chapter.
The first one-rupee note issued in India in 1917 carried the portrait of King George V, who was the ruler of India during that period. The currency was printed on white hand-made moulded paper, and issued in the form of stapled packet of 25 notes.
In 1949, post-independence; the Indian government redesigned the Re1 note using the Lion Capital of Ashoka as the image.
