Indian Commemorative Coins

Commemorative coins are issued to commemorate some particular event or issue. The first Indian commemorative coin with a bust of Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru was issued in 1964. Such coins are distinct in design. They have a reference to the occasion on which they were issued. While some coins of this category serve as collectors items, some are also issued for regular circulation. Modern and Commemorative Indian Coins are very interesting to discuss because they cover many topics like Indian Independence Struggle, War, Peace, Wildlife, Vegetation, Great Personalities, Various Events and Organisations. The highest value coin issued so far is for Rs. 1000 on the occasion of 1000 years of Brihadeeswarar Temple. Each set may have 2-9 coins of different values. 

Indian coins - An overview

Coin production in India is done at mints established for this purpose. There are four mints in India. Each of them have a long & distinguished history of Producing coins that serve every day needs of the people of India. The Mints are located at Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Noida. Alipore (Calcutta) and Bombay(Mumbai) are the older mints, established in 1829 by the British Government. The Alipore mint was originally located in Calcutta and moved to its present site in 1952. The Hyderabad mint was established in 1903 by the Government of the erstwhile Nizam of Hyderabad and was taken over by the Government of India in 1950 & started minting since 1953. Noida mint was set up in 1986 and started minting ferritic stainless steel coins from 1988.

Coins minted at the Bombay Mint has a small dot or diamond shaped mint mark under year of the Coin. While the Calcutta Mint has No Mint Mark beneath the date of coin, The Hyderabad Mint has five pointed STAR under the year of the coin. Noida mint started production in 1998  and has a small or thick dot under the date of the Coin.

The mints manufacture Regular issue coins (Circulation coins), Circulating Commemorative coins and Non-Circulating legal tenders.

Regular issue coins are the normal coins intended to be used in commerce every day and are typically issued with the same design for several years. They can found in day to day circulation.

Circulating commemorative coins are intended to be used for commerce, but the design is issued for a limited time. The intention is to honour a specific person or commemorate an event or can be on some specific theme.

Non circulating legal tender (NCLT) is legal tender coins which can in reality be used to purchase goods or services. But they are not intended to be used in such a manner and are mostly used as souvenirs. They are often produced in gold or silver or with a proof finish and are specifically issued by mints for a specific time, in a special package and at a higher than actual cost. Most of the NCLTs are considered as collectors’ items.

                               MUMBAI MINT            KOLKATA MINT

                


                          HYDERABAD MINT                       NOIDA MINT