By Shanker Man Singh Traditionally, Nepal Rastra Bank has a long history of issuing new notes of 5, 10, 20, 50 and 100 rupees on the national religious festival of Dashain and Tihar for decades. However, in this fiscal year 2081/82, the central bank discontinues this practice. In the last five years, Nepal Rastra Bank has spent an average of 1.3 billion rupees annually to print new notes. Among the benefits of issuing new and different banknotes are related to the improved security features as new banknotes may enhance anti-counterfeiting measures such as watermarks, security threads, and optical ink to make counterfeiting more difficult. Redesigning banknotes can give them a more modern, visually appealing look and help prevent counterfeiting. Issuing new notes with different denominations can help the monetary system meet the needs of the economy, such as adding or removing higher/lower denomination notes. Over time, banknotes become worn and damaged through use. Introducing new notes regularly can help maintain the overall quality and integrity of the currency in circulation. The realities of issuing new and different banknotes include the process of designing, producing and distributing new banknotes can be expensive for a central bank or monetary authority. Introducing unfamiliar new banknotes can create confusion and inconvenience for the general public as they adjust to the changes. Phasing out old notes and replacing them with new ones requires a well-coordinated effort to ensure a smooth transition. The printing and disposal of large quantity of banknotes have an environmental footprint that must be considered. Therefore, the decision to issue new and different banknotes involves balancing the potential benefits of improved security and functionality against the cost and disruption to the public. The Central Bank has not found any official evidence as to when such new notes have been distributed. Some former employees of NRB said that the then King Mahendra ordered them to provide such facilities. But it does not seem to be distributed publicly. King Mahendra did many things for the promotion of Hinduism in Nepal. Dashain, the festival of worshipping Shakti, was given more importance in this. Not only the Nepal Army and the king but also during the Rana period, the worship of Mahakali was done. In this way, giving more importance to Dashain, giving the longest public holiday on the occasion and giving additional allowance equal to one month's salary to employees during the Dasain festival was also started. Old officials of NRB say that as one such initiative, the facility of new notes is circulated during Dashain. Now NRB is ending the facility of matching notes in this way. Emotionally speaking, people used to feel that Dashain had arrived as soon as they got new notes. It is necessary to worship God by touching it, but it is necessary to express that feeling and get the feeling by touching the idol to God. It is informed that one billion rupees are being spent annually for the process of printing, transporting and distributing new notes focusing only on Dashain. Therefore, to save unnecessary expenditure, NRB, instead of new notes, is going to give only "Sukila Notes" (clean notes) this time. According to the NRB, this time also around a set of 18,500 rupees worth of banknotes will be provided per person. Looking at the average of five years, one billion 300 million rupees are being spent annually for the printing of new notes. It is said that from now on only the notes will be printed and sent to the market through the regular process. It has also become common knowledge that when giving notes during Dashain, a large amount of notes are distributed once and the notes do not come back immediately. Although small-rate retail notes will go to the market during Dashain, it is also said that NRB is studying how that money can be provided in sufficient quantity through the regular process. There would be a crowd of people going home for Dashain with new notes from different banks, the joy of getting new notes was different, the new notes would bring joy to Dashain. People are practised to use new notes when giving Dakshina. However, this time it will not happen. We might have to buy red envelopes.  At a glance, it is said that in the past, new notes worth 60 to 70 billion were released from Rashtra Bank in Dashain and Tihar. About 15 billion rupees were known to common people. To promote digital transactions, the bank has said that it will not distribute new notes on Dashain. In the past, NRB used to print new notes 3/4 months before the Dasain festival. NRB said that it has taken the decision to encourage digital transactions and reduce the cost of printing notes. It reduces the significant cost of printing new bank notes, estimated to be around Rs 1.3 billion annually. Less use of paper and ink seems to contribute to environmental protection because it is more likely to be used on occasion. Encourages the use of digital payment methods, aligning with modern financial practices. The tradition of exchanging new notes on Dashain is deeply ingrained in Nepali culture, and not issuing new notes can leave many people depressed, emotionally unsatisfied, and children upset. Some may perceive this decision as a lack of festival spirit or a reduction in the quality of the festival experience. How many would agree that it should also be taken as an opportunity to promote and enhance digital transactions and banking services? The possible reaction from the public who are accustomed to receiving new currency notes during the festive period can be both positive and negative as it is a habit of people to resist the change or “Resistance to Change”. Also, the increased circulation of old notes could increase pessimism about the currency. At a glance, the country's central bank has made it public in the past that it is preparing to print new notes with a modified map covering the disputed territory with India. The process of printing new Rs 100 notes has already started and is expected to be issued within 6 months to a year. Kalapani, Lipulek and Limpiyadhura territory of Nepal are included in the new note. The order for new and updated notes came after the decision of the Council of Ministers held some time back led by the then Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal. In Nepal, the notes sent to the market during Dashai are not preserved and cannot be used again due to their average life span. As this increases the expenses, the central bank is going to issue only "Sukila" notes instead of new notes. According to one NRB former governor, before 2060 BS, there was no custom of distributing new notes to common people for Dashain. From the year 2060/61, it seems that the same facilities have been given to everyone. Every year, the central bank continues to send new notes to the market and takes back old, dirty and unusable notes from the market and destroys them. The Central Bank starts the printing process by looking at the inflation rate, budget size, exchange rate situation, flow of remittances, balance of payments, note balance etc. According to a report on 'Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC)' published by the Currency Management Department of Nepal Rastra Bank in August 2022, demand for notes is high, especially during festivals and elections. The study report of 'Digital Currency 2022' also showed that if NRB is to issue 'Central Bank Digital Currency', only 50 percent of the notes in circulation would be printed in five years. During that period, the cost of note printing is projected to decrease by 4 billion 73 crores. NRB is also studying the trend of Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) and aims to start implementation of 'wholesale CBDC' used in transactions between banks and financial institutions from August 2026, according to the bank. Overall, the Bank has also mentioned in the monetary policy of the current financial year that it will proceed with the preparation of the format of the wholesale CBDC based on the study of the central bank electronic currency. Let us enjoy this Dashi with Sukila notes!