Pakistan printing fake Indian currency notes at Quetta

AFP reported on September 18 that a Pakistani Government printing press in Quetta, capital of Balochistan province, is reportedly churning out large quantities of counterfeit Indian currency. The rupee notes are then smuggled into India as “part of Pakistan‘s agenda of destabilising the Indian economy through fake currency,” according to Times of India. The notes are “supplied by the Pakistan government press free of cost to Dubai-based counterfeiters who, in turn, smuggle it into India using various means,” the report said quoting a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) note to Indian security agencies and the finance ministry. It also mentioned how fake currency notes were concealed in music systems, crockery boxes and washing machines, and sent to India through ‘carrier’ air passengers who were paid Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 for carrying a consignment from Dubai and other Gulf countries.  

The CBI also reportedly mentions Bangkok as a major centre of fake Indian currency notes production — smuggled into India through Nepal and Bangladesh.       

The Reserve Bank of India has estimated the amount of fake currency in circulation at almost 1.7 trillion rupees (37.5 billion dollars), the report said.