New Delhi, Mar 24: The inflow of fake Indian currency into India through the potous Indo-Nepal border was a matter of concern, a senior security official admitted today. Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) Gopal DG Sharma said here smugglers were bringing in both crude and highly sophisticated counterfeits into the country. ''We have seized counterfeits worth Rs 1.95 lakh during 2007-08...it is a matter of concern,'' he told reporters here.

''The counterfeits were not seized in one operation. The fake currency was seized throughout the year...the amount may sound small but we had been constantly recovering counterfeits,'' he said. A senior SSB official added that the Reserve Bank of India have provided the para military outfit with only a limited number of fake currency to train its men to detect it on interational borders of Nepal and Bhutan. ''More fake currency is required to train our men spread across various training establishments in identifying it in actual conditions,'' the offical said after the DG addressed the media on the 45th raising day of the outfit. He said after seizure, the fake currency was handed over to loca police for further investigation either by local officials or CBI.

A few years ago, the Naik Committee had estimated the number of fake currency notes in circulation in the country at 61,000 million pieces valued at Rs 1,69,000 crore till the year 2000. Such a huge gap in estimated circulation and seizures offered serious challenge to the law enforcement agencies.

UNI