Kolkata, Sep 5 (IANS) The Border Security Force (BSF) has seized fake Indian currency notes (FICN) worth Rs 1,99,500 from the India-Bangladesh Border in the Malda district of West Bengal, officials said.

The FICN was of Rs 500 denomination.

“On Wednesday, troops of the 71st Battalion BSF, posted at the Sovapur border outpost, received secret information regarding an attempt to smuggle FICN through their area of responsibility. All on-duty personnel were put on full alert. Around 1 p.m., suspicious movement was spotted on the Bangladesh side of the border fence. The jawans in the area alerted their colleagues and rushed towards the spot. A search of the area led to the seizure of a packet that contained 399 currency notes,” a senior BSF official said on Thursday.

“The currency notes were found to be fake. A total of 399 currency notes of Rs 500 denomination were seized. The counterfeit notes were thrown across the border fence into India by Bangladeshi smugglers to be picked up by their accomplices. This attempt was thwarted by the alert BSF jawans,” he added.

The seized counterfeit notes have been handed over to the concerned department for further action.

Another BSF official said that the FICN seized was of high quality.

Such high-quality currency notes are known to be printed in Pakistan and some other countries and then smuggled into India through the India-Bangladesh Border.

Sovapur, where the FICN was seized, is located in Malda’s Kaliachak.

This particular location of the district in north Bengal is a favourite for FICN smugglers.

Nearly 70 per cent of the FICN seized in India have moved through Kaliachak, the BSF official said.

After repeated requests from India, former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had made efforts to check the movement of FICN through her country.

The supply from Bangladesh dropped considerably by 2023.

However, the smuggling resumed after former Bangladesh PM Hasina was forced to quit and flee to India on August 5, 2024.

Investigators say that the FICN (of Rs 500 denomination) is purchased by Indian smugglers for Rs 200 each and sold for Rs 300 to those who distribute the currency notes in the market, hidden in bundles of original currency.

The smuggling of FICN poses a serious threat to the nation’s economy, and this is of greater concern under the prevailing circumstances, the BSF official added.

–IANS

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