Circulation of coins below one rupee eliminated: Pakistan Coinage (Amendment) Bill approved

National Assembly Standing Committee on Finance has unanimously approved Pakistan Coinage (Amendment) Bill, 2010 to formally eliminate circulation of coins below one rupee. The meeting was informed that as a result of increase in the inflationary rate and depreciation of Pakistani currency during the last few years, coins of less than one rupee are no more transacted in daily life due to their negligible worth.
The meeting was also informed that State Bank of Pakistan had already initiated the process to eliminate paisa from payments and receipts in bank''s transactions. State Bank of Pakistan Deputy Governor Kamran Shahzad said that minimum unit of currency would be Re 1 and coins of 5 paisa, 10 paisa, 25 paisa, 50 paisa would be eliminated after the enactment of the law. However, he said that masses would be given six months time after the enactment of law to deposit 600 million coins in circulation to the SBP. Secretary Finance Dr Waqar Masood said that in Pakistan 1906 law with respect to coins was operative which was required to be amended in line with the current need.
The meeting was informed that there would be no role of 5paisa, 10 paisa, 25 paisa, 50 paisa coins in Pakistan''s economy and with the enactment of Pakistan Coinage (Amendment) Bill, 2010 as an act of parliament, there would be a rupee era in Pakistan''s economy. However, on the request of the members of the committee, SBP has agreed to preserve 1 percent of these coins for heritage purposes.
The representative and the Finance Ministry and the SBP said that in view of the comments received from the general public and stakeholders, commercial banks, business community, SBP Banking Services Corporation (BSC), decimal and old coins are required to be eliminated. For the purpose, amendments have been submitted to the parliament through Pakistan Coinage (Amendment) Bill, 2010.
Statement of Objects and Reasons of the bill explained by the Minister of Finance in his written reply submitted to the committee stating that decimal coins are no more transacted in daily life due to their negligible worth as these have become obsolete and lost their utility and acceptance. Pakistan Mint has requested for return of old and obsolete decimal coins for re-cycling and re-melting in order to save government resources utilised for the purchase of metals for minting of Rs 1 and Rs 2 coins.
The N A body met in the parliament house with Fouzia Wahab MNA in the chair, Kashmala Tariq, Aftab Shaban Mirani, Rasheed Godial, Riaz Fatyana MNAs, Secretary Finance Dr Waqar Masood Khan, Deputy Governor SBP Kamran Shehzad and other officials also attended the meeting.