Quarantine option exists: Banks allowed to process currency notes through machines

KARACHI: The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) has allowed banks to process banknote through Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) certified machines. It has been decided that the banks will have the option to continue with the 14 days quarantine.

After the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic, in March this year, aimed to control the rapid spread of COVID-19 through currency notes, banks were advised to disinfect, seal and quarantine the cash collected from hospitals and clinics and banks were given credit for all such cash so quarantined and kept on behalf of the SBP.

Central banks’ practices on the quarantine of currency notes were reviewed by the SBP and it was indicated that quarantine of cash for 14 days is sufficient to disinfect the banknotes and can be put back into circulation. The World Health Organization has also advised that the life of the virus on porous surfaces is lower, compared to other hard surfaces.

Therefore, in May, SBP advised banks to quarantine cash collected from the public for 14 days before re-issuing the same. According to a fresh circular issued by the SBP, the 14-day quarantine for banknotes was introduced in line with the international practices and World Health Organization (WHO) guidelines. Now, in view of availability of a number of banknote disinfection machines and technologies, it has been decided that the banks will have the option to either continue with the 14 days quarantine requirements or process banknote through Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) certified machines in lieu of the 14 days quarantine.

The banks procuring such machines will ensure that the PCSIR certificate specially mentions the capacity of the machine to disinfect bacteria and viruses including the SARS-CoV2 that causes COVID-19.

The SBP said that the banks opting for procuring disinfection machines, etc, will inform Finance Department of the SBP about the machine and technology deployed by them, the PCSIR certifications and the detailed process of disinfection within 7 days of execution of contract with the vendor, for information and record.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020