New Delhi, Jan 27 : With back to back elections set to be held in India this year, Intelligence agencies have warned that the fake currency racket is bound to increase. The Dawood Syndicate which controls this racket from Pakistan, has increased printing of fake notes and the same is being moved to Bangladesh and Nepal.

An Intelligence Bureau official said that they have noticed heightened activity in Malda, West Bengal which is the main landing point for fake currency from the neighbouring country. Those running the racket in Malda have been preparing to receive a massive consignment from Bangladesh, the official added.

Another official said that the Dawood Syndicate will also look to move fake currency through the Nepal border and hence there is a heightened alert. These elements are trying to take advantage of the fact that the security mechanism will be more focussed on the elections and hence they would be able to get away with their nefarious activities.

Officials say that it is important that this menace is controlled at the border itself. Once the fake currency enters the country it is next to impossible to detect, the official added.

The Intelligence agencies who work closely with the forensics department have learnt that the notes are of very high quality and forensic experts believe that the notes are printed on highly sophisticated machines. The Pakistan establishment has invested huge capital to ensure that these notes cannot be detected by the Indian agencies.

Officials say that the fake currency has the perfect watermark formulation. This indicates that the notes are printed on regular currency making machines, which can be owned only by a state.

Intelligence agencies have learnt that fake currency notes to the tune of crores of Rupees were moved into Bangladesh. Most of the fake notes were dropped off using the sea route, the agencies have learnt. The D Syndicate finds this route easier today as there are no checks for Pakistan, thanks to Dhakaâ??s new soft policy towards Islamabad.

Under Muhammad Yunus the sea route was opened up to Pakistan for the first time. Indian agencies suspect that huge consignments of arms and ammunition have reached Bangladesh using the sea route. The same route is also being used to push the fake currency into Bangladesh.

The challenge would however be to bring it into India. The D Company will try to use both the Nepal and Bangladesh border to smuggle in the fake currency, officials say. While the consignment that comes in from Nepal would be taken to Bihar, the fake notes at the Bangladesh border will be moved into Malda.

From here the notes would be distributed to other parts of the country. Another official added that once the notes land in India, the target states would be the ones where elections are scheduled to be held.

Elections are due in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry. The polls are scheduled to be held between March and May 2026. Officials say that the D gang would try and move most of the fake notes into these states since the security agencies would be too busy with the elections.

The agencies are keeping a close watch on the border areas. The alert is high in Malda and the neighbouring areas, as the Intelligence agencies say that the biggest consignment would land in these places.

/IANS