By MADHU AGRAWAL
It is significant that ordinary members of public under present faulty system never get 100-rupees silver-alloy commemorative coins in normal sale, while some selected ones got attractive coins of metal-value much-much higher than face-value of 100-rupees free-of-cost in attractive packing.
Silver-alloy coins should have face-value more than double the metal-value at time of issue of coins, and should be available for general public at face-value right from date of release of coins through all coin-issuing bank-branches. According to an RTI response, metal-cost of coins on Rabindranath Tagore with face-value of rupees 150 was rupees 971 at time of issue of coins.
Cumbersome practice of selling higher-priced coin-sets through advance-booking much after issue of coins should be simplified by having just one category of ‘Proof Coin Set’ in all denominations abolishing the other category of ‘Uncirculated Set’, to be sold at convenient sale-points like bank-counters (private and public-sector) and philatical centres right from date of issue of coins for affording coin-collectors by giving banks sale-commission. Such steps will not only make general public part of commemorating an occasion through issue of coins, but will give net revenue-earning to government because such high-priced coins and their sets never come in actual circulation.
