Jorhat, July 6: Fifty paise coins adding upto several lakhs are lying in banks that have Reserve Bank of India (RBI) chests in Upper Assam for the past seven to eight years.

Banks with RBI chests receive cash directly from the RBI and distribute it to other banks. The Jorhat branch of the State Bank of India has 50 paise coins adding upto Rs 1 lakh in its chest.

Bank officials said because of a misinformation that the coins had been phased out by the RBI, people had stopped withdrawing the coins.

Bank officials said none of the organisations had been able to clear the misconceptions related to the coins of 50 paise denomination.

A senior bank official here said a large number of 50 paise coins were lying in about 25 RBI chests in different branches of nationalised banks and SBI branches in the five Upper Assam districts.

An SBI official said the Jorhat branch had installed a coin vending machine for the benefit of customers, but the 50 paise coins were never taken out.

The official said the stocks couldn’t be returned back to the RBI, as it was up to the RBI to decide whether the 50 paise stock could be transferred from Upper Assam to places where there was demand for it. He said it was a crime to refuse to accept a 50 paise coin.

The official said the RBI and organisations related to trade and commerce should carry out an awareness drive to inform people that the 50 paise coins were still in circulation.

The president of the Upper Assam Chamber of Commerce, O.P. Gattani, said another reason for the 50 paise coins going out of circulation was that many companies had started pricing their products in round figures. He said the organisation had been carrying out awareness drives in its newsletters, but more campaigning was required.