That 10 rupee note in your wallet may well be defective, going by a sensational revelation made in an investigation by television channel CNN-IBN.
According to the channel, a whopping 10 lakh notes were printed on defective currency paper from the Hoshangabad Security Paper Mill in Madhya Pradesh.
The security threading on these notes shockingly showed indecipherable text. They were reportedly from an Islamic nation
An inquiry report on the incident, which took place in 2002 when the United Progressive Alliance was in power, was kept under wraps by senior finance ministry officials.
The report stated that the notes either had Arabic text inscribed on the security thread or did not have any
security thread at all. The thread was also found to be non-magnetic when examined on a quality control device. The currency paper with the defective security thread also initially escaped at least four to five quality checks.
The company which supplied the defective security thread -- New Delhi-based Aristocraft International Limited -- faced no action
The CNN-IBN investigation claimed that the serious lapse was also kept under wraps by senior officers at the Security Paper Mill and Security Printing & Minting Corporation of India for over three months.
No report was sent to home ministry or finance ministry, the channel reported, adding, that officers in fact allowed the supplier to change the security thread stock without punitive action.
It is yet to be verified if there was any corruption involved.
