India-Bangladesh joint SOP to counter fake currency notes

Kolkata: India and Bangladesh have agreed to draft a standard operating procedure (SOP) to counter the growing menace of fake currency notes, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) said on Thursday.

The decision was taken during the second meeting of the Joint Task Force on Fake Currency Notes (FCN) between India and Bangladesh held in Dhaka on August 12-13.

The first meeting of the joint task force was held in Delhi in January 2014.

"Both sides discussed various issues to related with the menace of FCN and key areas of common concern were identified.

"It was agreed that a Standard Operating Procedure would be drafted to operationalise the MoU signed between India and Bangladesh during the visit of Indian Prime Minister to Bangladesh in June," the NIA said in a statement.

The Indian delegation led by NIA's Inspector General of Police Sanjeev Kumar Singh and Bangladesh Police Additional Inspector General Mohammad Mokhesur Rahman agreed on the need better intelligence sharing to combat the menace.

Meanwhile, the NIA, which has been probing two cases of fake notes recovered in West Bengal's Malda district, has registered a case involving of seizure of FICN of the face value of Rs.10 lakh from Murshidabad district.

"In compliance of a ministry of home affairs order, the NIA has registered a case pertaining to the seizure of FICN of the face value of Rs.10 lakh from Murshidabad," said the agency.

The FICNs were recovered from Sushanta Sahu, a resident of Dhenkanal district in Odhisa who was arrested on May 26 from Dhuliyan in Murshidabad.

The case was registered on Monday under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

The NIA is already probing the seizure of over FICN over Rs.75 lakh made by the BSF in the month of May from Malda district.

The BSF has been regularly seizing FICNs from across the Bangladesh in West Bengal.

Probing the fake notes racket, the NIA has arrested several people from across the country.