In a bid to help the visually impaired identify the denomination of an Indian banknote, the Reserve Bank of India on Wednesday launched a mobile app called Mobile Aided Note Identifier (MANI). The app was launched by RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das.
RBI said in a statement that the mobile app is capable of identifying the denominations of “Mahatma Gandhi Series and Mahatma Gandhi (New) Series” banknotes by checking “front or reverse side or part of the note including half folded notes at various holding angles and a broad range of light conditions”.
Highlights:
- The mobile app MANI was launched following reports of problems faced by visually-challenged persons in identifying the new currency notes launched after demonetization
- The application also works offline once installed
Users can freely download the app, called ‘MANI’ (Mobile Aided Note Identifier), from Android Playstore or iOS App Store. The application can scan the currency notes using the camera of the mobile phone. It also gives audio output in Hindi and English.
The central bank has introduced several currency notes, under ‘Mahatma Gandhi Series’, with significant changes in the sizes and designs after the demonetization in November 2016. Under the new series, banknotes of ₹10, ₹20, ₹50, ₹100, ₹200, ₹500 and ₹2,000 have been released in the past couple of years. However, there were reports of problems faced by visually-challenged people in identifying these new currency notes.
The RBI also said the app does not authenticate a note as either genuine or counterfeit.
