Nepal’s central bank on Thursday released a new 100-rupee banknote featuring the country’s revised political map. The map includes Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura territories that India claims as its own. India has consistently opposed Nepal’s updated map, calling it unacceptable.
Revised Map Printed on New Currency Note
According to reports the new banknote was issued by Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB) and carries the signature of former governor Mahaprasad Adhikari. The note shows the issuing date as “2081 BS,” which corresponds to the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar.
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Nepal updated its map in May 2020 after approval from parliament during the government led by Prime Minister K. P. Sharma Oli. The change was controversial because it included Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura areas controlled by India. India has repeatedly said that these regions fall within its territory.
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What Nepal Says About the New Note
A spokesperson for Nepal Rastra Bank said that the old 100-rupee note also carried the country’s map, but the design has now been revised in line with the government’s 2020 decision. The spokesperson clarified that only the 100-rupee note carries the national map, while other denominations 10, 50, 500 and 1,000 rupees do not feature a map.
India had reacted strongly in 2020 when Nepal published the revised map, calling it a “unilateral act” and warning that such “artificial enlargement” of territorial claims would not be accepted.
Design Features of the New 100-Rupee Note
The newly introduced note features several visual elements. On the left side is an image of Mount Everest. On the right side is a watermark of the rhododendron, Nepal’s national flower. The center of the note displays Nepal’s map in light green.
Next to the map is an Ashoka Pillar emblem with the inscription: “Lumbini – birthplace of Gautam Buddha.” The reverse side of the note carries an image of a one-horned rhinoceros, an animal native to Nepal’s protected areas.
The note also includes a security thread and raised black dots, enabling people with visual impairments to identify it easily.
Nepal-India Border Context
Nepal shares a border of more than 1,850 kilometers with India. The boundary touches the Indian states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. The disputed areas Kalapani, Lipulekh and Limpiyadhura lie near the India–Nepal–China tri-junction and have long been a point of diplomatic disagreement.