Hubballi: Even though the Reserve Bank of India RBI ) has repeatedly clarified the legal tender status of Rs 10 coins , business establishments in the twin cities have continued to stop accepting them. A reality check by TOI has revealed the lack of awareness among some section of shop-owners on the legal tender status of the coin.Many people have alleged that shopkeepers are not accepting the Rs 10 coin. A foodgrain shop owner at Gokul Road told TOI that he is not accepting Rs 10 coin as nobody in the city is accepting it. Another shopkeeper in Maruthi Nagar also said that he does not accept the coin.Suraj, a panipuri vendor at Deshpande Nagar, claimed that Rs 10 coins were banned in 2017. “I don’t accept the coin and I don’t have a Rs 10 coin as it is not valid. The government banned the coins last year,” he said.Sanam, a sugarcane juice vendor, also refused to accept Rs 10 coin. He said that nobody is accepting the coins in the city.Tourists to the city have also expressed their displeasure over the refusal of accepting the coins by business establishments. Ashutosh from Mumbai has complained to the RBI in a tweet in this regard. “I visited four shops in Hubballi. None of them is accepting Rs 10 coin. One vendor said that he has got 5000 of Rs 10 denomination and banks are also not accepting but asking the depositors to disburse the coins in market,” he said.Shivu Doddamani, a labourer, said that city bus conductors were also not accepting the Rs 10 coins a few days back. “Now, they are accepting after the reports of the legal tender status of the coins were published in newspapers a few days back. However, shops and small hotels are yet to accept them,” he said.Kaustav Khandekar, the branch manager of SBI Intouch, said that Rs 10 coin is legal tender and the vendors must accept it without any apprehensions. “The RBI clarified recently that Rs 10 coins are legal tender,” he said.The RBI said that the coins have distinctive features to reflect various themes of economic, social and cultural values and are introduced from time to time. As coins have longer life, coins of different designs and shapes circulate in the market at the same time. So far the RBI has issued Rs 10 coins in 14 designs and the public has been informed of their distinctive features. All these coins are legal tender and can be accepted for transactions. The RBI has also advised banks to accept coins for transactions and exchange at all their branches.On Monday, several people in the twin cities received messages from RBI, reiterating the legal tender status of Rs 10 coins.

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