Monday, May 16 2005 17:30 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: In a bid to counter the fake stamp menace after the Rs 5,000 crore Telgi scam, the Finance Ministry has changed the design of stamp papers that will have "intricate" security features.

"New design of stamps from Re 1 to Rs 25,000 has been approved and production and supply has started in a phased manner," the Ministry said in a release today (May 16, 2005).

Security Printing Press of Hyderabad has started printing stamps upto a denomination of Rs 20, while India Security Press of Nasik is printing denominations of Rs 50, Rs 100 and Rs 500.

High-value stamps worth Rs 10,000-25,000 are in the process of design and printing.

The new stamp papers are being printed on a special paper with security inks and special techniques.

Besides, the new stamps will now be state specific - the names of the States will be printed on the stamps.

The stamps will also bear a serial number so that it can be easily tracked.

"High value stamps are printed on specific paper with intricate security features and will be very easy to identify by the common public," the Ministry said.

The move comes after a year's technical effort by the finance and revenue departments of Centre and State Governments. Moreover, revenue officials have been imparted training to identify counterfeit stamp papers and segregate them.