New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has revealed that nearly all Rs 2000 notes have been returned following the government's decision to withdraw them. As of November 29, 2024, 98.01% of these high-value banknotes have been returned, significantly reducing their circulation value from Rs 3.56 lakh crore in May 2023 to just Rs 6,839 crore.

Despite this reduction, the Rs 2000 notes still remain legal tender, according to the RBI's latest update. However, the process for depositing or exchanging these notes has changed. Initially, individuals could exchange Rs 2000 notes at any bank branch until October 7, 2023. Now, this service is only available at 19 RBI issue offices across India.

Since October 2023, people have been able to deposit Rs 2000 notes into their accounts at these designated RBI offices or even send them via India Post to be credited later. The RBI offices accepting these notes are located in cities like Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Mumbai, Kolkata, and New Delhi, among others.

Rs 2000 notes were first introduced in November 2016 as part of the government's demonetisation effort to replace the old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes.

How to Exchange Rs 2000 Notes: RBI's Update on the Process

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has informed the public that Rs 2000 banknotes can still be sent via India Post from any post office across India to one of the RBI issue offices for credit to bank accounts. This facility allows individuals to deposit their Rs 2000 notes remotely.

Although the circulation of Rs 2000 notes has significantly decreased, they continue to be recognized as legal tender.

The 19 RBI offices currently accepting these notes for deposit and exchange are located in cities including Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Belapur, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Jammu, Kanpur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur, New Delhi, Patna, and Thiruvananthapuram.

Introduced in November 2016, the Rs 2000 notes replaced the demonetized Rs 1000 and Rs 500 banknotes, as part of the government's currency reform efforts.