Demonetisation is ‘the‘ trending topic in India. It brought along with it a scarcity of cash and an abundance of rumours. Social media has been on fire with rumours surrounding demonetisation. Very few people had a clear idea of what was actually happening. Here we have compiled a list of rumours related to demonetisation in the last one and half months.

1. Know where your notes are

The new Rs 2000 was rumoured to have remote GPS tracking abilities due to a chip embedded within the note, right out of a sci-fi flick. Giving due credit to the guy who thought this up, such technology simply does not exist within our hands as of now.

2. Spelling mistake that wasn’t

Another rumour that initially made a buzz was that there was a spelling error in writing 2,000 in Hindi and Urdu. This caused a wave of panic among the public who thought that the new notes would be recalled to fix the problem. The RBI later clarified that the note had no spelling errors, much to the relief of the public.

3. Solar notes

This is perhaps the most unbelievable and the most hilarious rumour on demonetisation. The new note was rumoured to light up a bulb after being exposed to sunlight for a month. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting laughed off the rumours, calling it a ‘figment of imagination’.

4. Dry cleaning only

The new Rs 2000 note was said to lose colour due to its poor quality. There were videos of people on social media trying to pull this off. Indians used water and sprite alike to check the quality of the notes. Although it does not shed colour in water, it does shed colour when rubbed with a piece of rag due to a security feature called Intaglio printing. Economic Affairs Secretary Shaktikanta Das set the records straight, saying that if there is no colour coming out, it could be fake currency.

5. Save our salt

Salt flew off the shelves as demonetization triggered a rumoured salt shortage in India. Salt prices were rumoured to skyrocket and people bought salt in large quantities. For a country that barely uses 25 per cent of the salt it produces, it is safe to say such a situation is hardly likely.

6. Rs 100 and Rs 50, you are next!!

The present speculation is that Rs 50 and 100 notes will also be demonetised and a note of Rs. 1000 would be introduced in the coming months. This rumour is commonplace with everybody talking about it. The Finance Ministry clarified that no such thing is slated to happen.

7. ‘Exceptional’ wedding

This rumour tops the chart. Social media was abuzz with a letter that authorised people with wedding plans to withdraw Rs 5 lakh from their respective accounts after a stamp from the local DCP. The DCP of Delhi shot down these rumours in a tweet.

8. Gold audit hoax

During Modi’s visit to Japan, he announced further steps to curb back money. This sparked rumours about possible freezing of assets in gold and jewellery, and also sealing of bank lockers. The Finance Ministry trashed the rumours, saying the government had no plans to target gold in individual possession.

9. It’s temporary

Another rumour was that the new notes are temporary and would go defunct very soon. They would again be recalled and replaced by other notes. The Finance Ministry clarified that it had no such plans and would just look to handle the present situation with utmost care.

10. The banker of banks

When the cash crunch started, bankers and common man alike bore the brunt of lack of liquid cash. This ignited another rumour that you could just go to the RBI, the country’s Central Bank, to directly withdraw money after acquiring a stamp from the local DC. Police and the RBI shot down the rumour, saying they would not entertain any such request.

12. And the award goes to…

This rumour takes the cake. There were Facebook posts and Whatsapp messages doing the rounds, declaring Rs 2000 note to be the best note in the world and attributing it to UNESCO. This post was on similar lines as certain previous posts, for example the one which declared the National Anthem of India to be the best anthem in the world!