India Unveils Its First Official Gold Coin Featuring Ashoka Chakra

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Prime Minister Narendra Modi has launched three gold related schemes, including 'India gold coin' bearing Ashok Chakra, to cash in on festival fervour.

Coins and schemes tapping into India's gold value

This is a great aspect of our tradition, has developed a tradition in our daily lives for women empowerment: PM Modi pic.twitter.com/VP4lJpGIlj

¡ª ANI (@ANI_news) November 5, 2015

Coins will be available in denominations of 5 and 10 grams while bar or bullion of 20 grams through MMTC outlets. The PM also launched the Gold Monetisation Scheme (GMS) and Sovereign Gold Bond Scheme. The government had in September cleared the GMS aimed at tapping part of an estimated 20,000 tonnes of idle gold worth about Rs 5,40,000 crore into the banking system and also issuing Sovereign Gold Bonds as an alternative to the precious metal. The decision to issue Indian gold coins and gold monetisation and bond scheme follows an announcement made by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in 2015-16 Budget speech.

15,000 coins of 5 gms and 3750 gold bullions

PM Narendra Modi launches three mega gold related schemes in Delhi. pic.twitter.com/JPEQu7NAuD

¡ª ANI (@ANI_news) November 5, 2015

A finance ministry statement said 15,000 coins of 5gm, 20,000 coins of 10 gm and 3,750 Gold bullions will be available initially. The GMS will replace the existing Gold Deposit Scheme, 1999. However, the deposits outstanding under the Gold Deposit Scheme will be allowed to run till maturity unless the depositors prematurely withdraw them, it said. The minimum deposit at any one time shall be raw gold (bars, coins, jewellery excluding stones and other metals) equivalent to 30 grams of gold of 995 fineness, it said, adding, there is no maximum limit for deposit.

With regard to Sovereign Gold Bonds, it said, the RBI in consultation with Government, has decided to issue such instruments with an interest rate of 2.75 per cent. "Applications for the bond will be accepted from November 5-20. The Bonds will be issued on November 26. The Bonds will be sold through banks and designated post offices as may be notified. The borrowing through issuance of Bond will form part of market borrowing programme of Government," it said.

Aimed at providing an alternative to buying physical gold, the gold bond scheme will offer investors a choice to buy bonds worth 2 grams of gold, up to a maximum of 500 grams.

This is the first tranche of the gold bond scheme and subsequent tranches would be notified later. The tenor of the bond will be for a period of eight years with exit option from fifth year to be exercised on the interest payment dates.

(Originally published in the Times of India)