If you are in possession of a soiled or mutilated Rs 200 and Rs 2,000 note, it might become just impossible for you to get it exchanged. The reason being, the rules governing their exchange are yet to be amended. According to reports, exchange of imperfect notes is governed by Reserve Bank of India (Note Refund) Rules 2009 which are part of Section 28 of the RBI Act. The Act specifies currency notes of Rs 5, Rs 10, Rs 50, Rs 100, Rs 500, Rs 1,000, Rs 5,000 and Rs 10,000 denomination, but Rs 200 and Rs 2,000 notes are not mentioned in the list.

The Central Bank reportedly has written to the Finance Ministry about the need to amend the Act, but it is yet to hear from the government. According to an Economic Times report, Economic Affairs Secretary Subhash C Garg has said that new printing of Rs 2000 notes have been stopped as it has reached its threshold of Rs 6.70 lakh crore in the system. According to a Zee News report, the 2,000 rupee notes account for about 35 percent of the Rs 18.43 lakh crore currency in circulation in the country.

Rs 2,000 notes were introduced in the market, immediately after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced demonetised Rs 500 and Rs 100 notes. RBI introduced Rs 200 last year.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 14, 2018 04:18 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).