India to launch first ever national gold coin in October

By  Paul Ploumis 28 Sep 2015  Last updated at  08:13:18 GMT

NEW DELHI (Scrap Monster): The Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation (MMTC) under the Union Commerce Ministry will manufacture and market ‘India Gold Coins’-the national coin of the country. This is the first time that the country will be launching national coin. The initiative is linked to the recently announced gold monetization scheme.

The launch of the coins is scheduled to be held in October before the commencement of festive season. The gold coins will come in 5 grams and 10grams weight and would have the face of Mahatma Gandhi and Asoka Chakra engraved on them. The coins will be considered as the national coin of India, stated Ved Prakash, Managing Director, MMTC.

According to sources, MMTC may not need to import gold in order to manufacture the coins, as the required gold for making coins will be sourced from the gold collected as part of the government’s new gold monetization scheme. The monetization scheme targets around 22,000 tonnes of idle gold lying with Indian households and temple vaults.

The state-owned agency plans to produce 20,000 gold coins per month initially. Depending on customer demand, the production of gold coins may be scaled higher to 50,000 per month. The sale of coins will be through MMTC offices and showrooms. As per sources, MMTC is already in talks with the Indian Postal Department and the State Bank of India authorities to strike a deal so as to sell these coins through post offices and bank branch outlets. The coins will also be made available for sale in overseas countries with sizable non-resident Indian population such as the US, the UK and South Africa.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is to unveil the ‘India Gold Coins’ during October this year.