Bangalore, June 15
Technology developed by an Indore industry to turn waste currency notes into eco-friendly sheets for making doors and furniture recently sent Bellary police into a tizzy. Sacks full of torn and shredded currency notes kept in the warehouse of a plywood factory in Bellary were recovered by the police on Monday night. It triggered off hectic speculations and several theories.

Coming close on the heels of the “cash for bail” incident (involving a CBI court judge in Andhra Pradesh who allegedly accepted cash bribe worth crores for granting bail to Bellary-based mining czar Janardhana Reddy), the theory that found maximum takers was that the money was meant for another bribe to the Reddy brothers and was destroyed after the CBI got a whiff of the plan.

Two hundred and fifty (250) sacks stuffed with shredded currency notes were seized by police from godown of a plywood factory. Each bag weighed 25 to 30 kg. Police had raided the godown following a tip-off.

The notes were shredded so fine that it was not possible to make out their denominations. The factory owner told the police that he got the notes from Indore. He would have compressed the notes to produce sheets out of these to make doors, he said.

Not convinced by the explanation, police sealed the godown. A police officer was sent to Indore to make inquiries. Bellary SP Chandragupta today told this correspondent that the police officer who went to Indore to investigate the case reported to him over phone that the claim of the plywood factory owner was true. “He will return from Indore tomorrow and submit a report. We will then close the case formally,” Chandragupta said.

There is apparently no need to take additional permission for recycling soiled notes since it falls under the solid waste management scheme of the government. It is also not necessary to take clearance from pollution control board because soiled currency notes are not considered hazardous.

Soiled notes have been used to make trays, coasters and paper weights.