Fake Currency Notes Worth ₹4.63 Lakh Found in Axis Bank Currency Chest in Meerut
Meerut: Counterfeit currency notes with a total face value of ₹4.63 lakh have been detected at an Axis Bank currency chest in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, raising questions over how the fake notes entered the banking system.
According to police, as many as 1,323 counterfeit notes were found during a detailed verification of cash received at the bank’s currency chest over a period of about 13 months. The notes were identified during the scrutiny of cash deposited between December 1, 2024, and December 31, 2025.
The currency chest is located in Mangal Pandey Nagar and falls under the Medical police station area. Bank officials reportedly detected the counterfeit currency while conducting a cash-counting exercise during the second week of September.
Counterfeit Notes Found in Four Denominations
The fake currency notes were found across four denominations — ₹500, ₹200, ₹100 and ₹50. According to the complaint submitted by the currency chest manager, the combined face value of the counterfeit notes came to ₹4,63,650.
The discovery was made while bank officials were checking and verifying cash that had been received over the previous months. The large number of notes involved prompted the bank to approach the police and formally report the matter.
The complaint was filed by Sartaj Singh, the currency chest manager and manager of the Axis Bank branch in Mangal Pandey Nagar. Singh, who is a resident of Hisar, approached Meerut SSP BBGTS Murthy on September 16.
Following the complaint, an FIR was registered at the Civil Lines police station on September 22.
Currency Chest Connected to 186 Axis Bank Branches
The complaint also highlighted the extensive network connected to the currency chest. According to the bank’s complaint, the Meerut currency chest is linked to 186 Axis Bank branches.
Customers deposit cash at these branches as part of their regular banking transactions. The cash is subsequently sent to the designated currency chest, where it undergoes processing, counting and verification.
Because of this network, the police investigation will have to establish how and at what stage the counterfeit notes entered the cash flow before eventually reaching the currency chest.
Investigation Follows Detection
Civil Lines police station has been identified as the nodal police station for counterfeit currency cases in Meerut. The registration of the FIR means the matter has now formally entered the police investigation process.
Authorities are expected to examine the cash records and other available details to understand the source and movement of the counterfeit notes. Since the currency had been received over a period stretching across more than a year, investigators may have to examine transactions and cash movement records from multiple branches connected to the currency chest.
The detection comes just days after counterfeit currency with a reported face value of ₹17.29 crore was found in the currency chest of Punjab National Bank in neighbouring Saharanpur district.
The two incidents have drawn attention to the issue of counterfeit currency reaching banking channels in the region. However, the Meerut case involves a substantially smaller amount, with the Axis Bank currency chest reporting 1,323 fake notes with a total face value of ₹4,63,650.
Bank Verification Led to Discovery
The counterfeit notes were not reportedly identified at the time the cash initially entered the currency chest. Instead, they were detected during a later verification and counting exercise.
Bank officials conducted the detailed counting during the second week of September, examining cash received between December 2024 and December 2025. It was during this scrutiny that the counterfeit notes in different denominations were identified.
The case now centres on determining where the fake notes originated and how they moved through the banking network before being detected.
The police investigation is expected to look into the relevant cash deposits, branch-level records and movement of currency to the Meerut currency chest. The findings could help establish the route through which the counterfeit notes entered circulation.
For now, the matter remains under investigation following the FIR registered on September 22. The detection of the fake currency highlights the importance of continued verification and scrutiny of cash as it moves through the formal banking system.
News source: Information for this article was gathered from a variety of reliable news outlets.
