ANOTHER COIN GOES FOR A TOSS

From the 30^th of June this year, the Reserve Bank of India withdrew the 25 paise coins from circulation. In the process, they have joined the likes of 1, 2, 3, 5, 10 and 20 paise coins which ceased to be legal tenders a long time ago. It is reported that the cost of minting a 25 paise coin exceeds its actual value and hence was no longer feasible to mint.

            I remember the time when my father presented me a small tin of coins consisting of a few escudos and coins of some other countries. This set me off to pursue this hobby with a lot of interest. I found my first real album, quite accidentally, while on a holiday in Coimbatore. In due course of time, however, other interests took over and the albums remained buried under books and magazines.

            A few days ago I dusted my albums of coins and came across many of the coins that were in circulation when I was young but now have no value in our local markets. From my humble collection, I share with you some of these coins. They would surely remind many of the readers the things they could purchase in exchange of a single aluminium coin. And to the young reader, well, here’s your chance to see the money you will never earn and never spend!

(A version of this photo feature appeared on Gomantak Times, dt: August 2, 2011)