New Delhi: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is gearing up for the trial of plastic currency notes printed in Australia.

A proposed introduction of plastic or polymer currency notes, depending on the success of a trial pilot project, is expected to tackle this problem to a large extent because of a much longer shelf-life of the plastic bills, the Business Standard says quoting the PTI.

Pioneered by Australia, the plastic currency notes are already in use across a number of other countries, including Singapore, Canada, New Zealand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Fiji, Brunei, Papua New Guinea and Romania, while the UK is also said to be toying with the idea.

In India, RBI is planning to introduce one billion pieces of Rs 10 notes in polymer or plastic on a trial basis in Kochi, Mysore, Jaipur, Bhubaneswar and Shimla, although a timeline is yet to be decided, PTI reports.

According to Gerry Wilson of Australia-based Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the polymer notes have longer life time and can be produced at a faster rate than paper currency. Wilson is Theme Leader (Flexible Electronics), Materials Science and Engineering, at CSIRO, which worked closely with the Reserve Bank of Australia in developing polymer notes. Australia was the first country to shift to these currencies.

- This report is based on report in the Business Standard.