TIRUMALA: Two years after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the withdrawal of Rs 2,000 notes on May 19, 2023, the sacred Tirumala temple continues to receive these pink notes as offerings.
The temple’s hundi alone collects approximately fifty Rs 2,000 notes daily, while other temples managed by the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) in and around Tirupati receive an additional 25 to 30 such notes each day. As of May 7, 2025, the total number of Rs 2,000 denomination notes accumulated since November 7, 2023, stands at 46,024 (valued at Rs 9,20,48,000).
The RBI’s decision to recall Rs 2,000 notes was aimed at curbing fake currency transactions and controlling circulation, a move described by the Regional RBI Chest Coordinator as a form of demonetization.
Banks, both public and private, along with public sector institutions, were tasked with facilitating the exchange of these notes. However, the TTD continues to grapple with the inflow of these notes, which devotees offer as “kanukas” (sacred offerings) to Lord Venkateswara.
This is not the first time the TTD has faced challenges with demonetized currency. In 2016, following the central government’s demonetization of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 notes, the TTD accumulated 8.14 lakh such notes, valued at Rs 47.5 crore. By June 19, 2021, TTD records showed 1.8 lakh Rs 1,000 notes (worth Rs 80 crore) and 6.34 lakh Rs 500 notes (worth Rs 31.7 crore) stranded with the trust.
Despite efforts by TTD officials and the Trust Board to exchange these notes with the Union Finance Ministry and banks, the attempts were unsuccessful.
‘These worthless notes have sentimental value’
Many private individuals and institutions destroyed their leftover notes, but TTD hesitated to do so, citing the “devotional and sentimental value” of the offerings. “These worthless notes have sentimental value as they were offered to Lord Venkateswara,” a TTD official stated.
The same sentiment now applies to the Rs 2,000 notes. While banks continue to accept these notes for accounting until March 31, 2025, an Assistant Executive Officer (AEO) of Parakamani reported that the Tirumala hundi alone receives around 50 pink notes daily.
Last year, TTD deposited Rs 60 lakh to Rs 80 lakh worth of Rs 2,000 notes monthly, though the number has slightly reduced this year. Other TTD-managed temples, unable to deposit these notes locally as banks only accept them at Tirumala, send their Rs 2,000 notes to the main temple for processing.
A Parakamani official told TNIE that 15 to 20 additional Rs 2,000 notes are received daily from other TTD temples. The continued inflow of these notes highlights the deep devotional sentiments of devotees, posing a unique challenge for TTD in managing these demonetized offerings.