The Government on Thursday 15, July 2010 adopted a new symbol for the rupee that shall be used henceforth to represent the Indian currency in all written and electronic communication worldwide thus joining the elite club of currencies such as UK's pound sterling, US dollar and the Japanese Yen that are identified by a symbol.
The Indian Government is of the opinion, with this the Indian rupee will also be seen as a distinct entity from its name sakes in the neighbouring countries such as Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Indonesia, where either rupee or rupaiah are in vogue.
The question to ponder is are we not already different than these countries? and these countries have grown at our own expense and more so as an off shoot of our country.
The old adage “Every coin has two sides” a few citizens may speak for it and a few may against, but as a true Indian nobody would doubt the reasons beyond the making of the symbol.
When we speak about Indian economy do we really need this facial make over?
Will this have any impact to the vast majority of Indians who strive to have the basic necessity i.e. the “Roti, Kapda aur Makaan …” these, three words that have been used often by the leaders of our country to convince people of their priorities and to show the masses that they care? But sadly, more often than not, such promises have remained just words and nothing beyond.
Though our economy has grown over the last 60+ post Independence years and we have achieved a lot; but the rich - poor divide still remains. We still have not made a difference in the lives of millions of our citizens.
Today the need is more than ever for both the private and the Government sector to take this challenge and work together in cooperation and contribute to make a small difference in the lives of citizens and this would surely go a long way in creating a strong India.
Nevertheless it is a very bold move and we all should congratulate ourselves and wish the rupee creates its own identity and really become a leader as compared to other currencies.
3 comments:
Spot on Venky.
I was wondering if you were joining the bandwagon of cynics, who are just bent upon criticizing the new 'symbol'. Glad you chose not to.
Lets take it as a new step towards a bold new World identity rather than anything more.
Yes the economy needs to do more to ameliorate the living conditions of the majority of Indians reeling under the unusual price rise that leaves nothing to cheer about in the face of the brand new identity.
Personally, for one obsessed with the Devanagari script, I am overwhelmed with the Rupee symbol.
Keep going on the good stuff... keep penning your thoughts as always !
One small info which may be supplement to your article is courtesy wikipedia:
International Use: With Partition, the Pakistani rupee came into existence, initially using Indian coins and Indian currency notes simply overstamped with "Pakistan". In previous times, the Indian rupee was an official currency of other countries, including Aden, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the Trucial States, Kenya, Tanganyika, Uganda, the Seychelles, and Mauritius.
The Indian government introduced the Gulf rupee, also known as the Persian Gulf rupee (XPGR), as a replacement for the Indian rupee for circulation exclusively outside the country with the Reserve Bank of India [Amendment] Act, 1 May 1959. This creation of a separate currency was an attempt to reduce the strain put on India's foreign reserves by gold smuggling. After India devalued the rupee on 6 June 1966, those countries still using it – Oman, Qatar, and the Trucial States (which became the United Arab Emirates in 1971) – replaced the Gulf rupee with their own currencies. Kuwait and Bahrain had already done so in 1961 and 1965 respectively.
The Bhutanese ngultrum is pegged at par with the Indian rupee, and both currencies are accepted in Bhutan. The Indian rupee is also accepted in towns in Nepal which lie near the border with India.
Other recent major facts:
1991 - India began to lift restrictions on its currency. A series of reforms remove restrictions on current account transactions including trade, interest payments & remittances and on some capital assets-based transactions. Liberalized Exchange Rate Management
System (LERMS), a dual exchange rate system, introduced a partial convertibility of the Rupee in March 1992.[13]
1997 - A panel set up to explore capital account convertibility recommended India move towards full convertibility by 2000, but timetable abandoned in the wake of the 1997-98 East Asian financial crisis.
2006 - The Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, asks the Finance Minister and the Reserve Bank of India to prepare a road map for moving towards capital account convertibility. "The "Fuller Capital Account Convertibility Report"". 2006-07-31. http://rbidocs.rbi.org.in/rdocs/PublicationReport/Pdfs/72250.pdf. Retrieved 2009-01-23.
i am with you on this subject.....but i seriously wish that the folks in charge gear up to take the challenges ahead of us. I am afraid that coming monsoon session will be stalled by the opposition and things will come to stand still situation.
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