Rupee finally has a symbol.. now what?

India finally has a currency symbol for the Rupee.  Five symbols were shortlisted.

But the final symbol, originally to be selected in the Cabinet meeting on June 24, 2010 was finalized in the meeting on July 15.  It was created by an IIT alumnus – D Udaya Kumar.

The new symbol is a blend of the Devanagari “?” and the Roman capital “R” without the stem. The parallel lines at the top (with white space between them) make an allusion to the tricolor Indian flag.

The international 3 letter code is INR for the Indian rupee.  Finally a currency which can trace itself back to mid 16th century when Sher Shah Suri introduced the silver coin (178 grains) equal to a Rupayiah.

How would it benefit and is it a “great” thing as it is made out to be?  Probably not.  But that doesn’t stop the Government of India from gloating.

“With this, India will join an elite group of countries which have a distinct currency symbol. It denotes the robustness of Indian economy,” said Ambika Soni, the Minister for Information and Broadcasting.

It’s pretty obvious that India’s “Information” minister doesn’t have credible information!!  One would wonder how can she manage the Information ministry if she herself is totally clueless!! But you can’t blame her because the “intelligentsia” is also jumping around with excitement:

“This is yet another symbol of the coming of age of India as a major player in the world economy,” says Surjit Bhalla, managing director of Oxus Research and Investments, a New Delhi-based economic research firm.

But sorry to blow the party bubble, guys, Indian Rupee is NOT the 5th currency to have gotten the symbol – there are a few others – unheard of – as well like : Nigerian Nairas ₦, and Mongolian Tugriks ₮.  So its not such an august company as it is made out to be.

But its a nice distraction.  So let’s enjoy… 🙂

Reference Links:

Indian rupee sign
India’s new currency symbol puts rupee in the money