By Karuna Thapa
Kathmandu, February 25
In its Biratnagar branch, the Nepal Rastra Bank will also burn bogus banknotes. The Banknote Shredding and Briquetting System (BSBS) was officially launched today at the Biratnagar office by Governor Maha Prasad Adhikari (Friday). The system was installed with the goal of modernizing and automating the laundry, according to NRB.
Governor Adhikari, who inaugurated BSBS, said it was a significant step forward in the bank’s modernization and technology-friendly performance. The process of modifying the rules for laundering notes and creating processes in this respect has reached the final stage, according to the official, who mentioned that research is being conducted on the probable usage of briquettes to be made by BSBS.
Revati Prasad Nepal, Executive Director of the Department of Currency Management,
addressed at the event about the bank’s policy for laundering ineligible notes and the BSBS operation method. The usage of BSBS has updated the money-laundering system, according to Parashuram Nepal, Chief of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, Morang.
Previously, banknotes that were deemed unfit for circulation were burned and destroyed by
the central bank. BSBS machines have been used to make small notes and briquettes utilizing automatic technology for quite some time now. The BSBS machine creates briquettes from packages and bundles of all types of banknotes, including cotton and polymers.
The machine is divided into two pieces. The first step is to shatter the note, and the second is to turn the broken note into briquettes. The machine can handle up to 200 kg of banknotes at a time and can break 100 kilograms of notes every hour. 6 x 6 millimeters is the average size of such a piece.
The broken notes can be processed at a rate of 200 kilograms per hour to make briquettes. The BSBS machine may work for up to 1,000 hours each year. Briquettes of this type are thought to be useful in brick kilns, paper mills, coal-using enterprises, and even at home.
