Days remaining to
Independence Day -
August 14

A national currency is a point of pride, seen as absolutely essential to the identity of the nation, like a stamp, a flag or a national anthem.

The national pride of many countries is deeply wound up in the maintenance of national symbols, of which the currency is one. This is particularly true of the younger nations of the world, who gained their independence in the last 60 years, since World War II. For many of them, the national currency (along with other institutions such as national airlines) is an important symbol separating them from their colonial past.

As other currencies of the world, the Pakistani Rupee fulfils certain criteria of which a few are mentioned below:

Name:

The word Rupee derives from the Sanskrit word for Silver - 'Rupya'.

Value:

Notes issued pre-1971 were in both Urdu and Bengali. With the independence of Bangladesh, the Pakistani Rupee has only Urdu text.

The only exception from the above mentioned are the words 'State Bank of Pakistan' and value of the note, which are in English.

Graphic Representation of the Community:

The monetary unit of Pakistan consists of 100 paisa. From 1947 to 1972, Pakistan was a member of the sterling area, but in 1971, when the United States dollar was devalued, the rupee was unpegged from sterling and pegged to the dollar at the rate of Rs4.76 per US$1. On May 12, 1972, the rupee was devalued from Rs4.76 to Rs11 per US$1. In February 1973, when the dollar was again devalued, the rupee maintained its value in terms of gold, and its value in relation to the dollar rose to Rs9.90 per US$1, where it remained until January 1982. After January 1982, the rupee was pegged to a market basket of currencies important to Pakistan's trade. The rupee subsequently depreciated steadily against the dollar, reaching Rs30.30 to US$1 at the end of February 1994.

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Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1947-1948	Obverse & Reverse
1953-1963	Obverse & Reverse
1973	Obverse & Reverse
1975-1981	Obverse & Reverse
1983	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1947	Obverse & Reverse
1986	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1947 - 1948	Obverse & Reverse
1951	Obverse & Reverse
1957	Obverse & Reverse
1972-1978	Obverse & Reverse
1975-1984	Obverse & Reverse
1997	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1947	Obverse & Reverse
1953	Obverse & Reverse
1957	Obverse & Reverse
1957	Obverse & Reverse
1970	Obverse & Reverse
1973	Obverse & Reverse
1986	Obverse & Reverse
2006	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
2005	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1957	Obverse & Reverse
1972-1978	Obverse & Reverse
1981-1982	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1947-1948	Obverse & Reverse
1953	Obverse & Reverse
1957	Obverse & Reverse
1973	Obverse & Reverse
1975	Obverse & Reverse
1975	Obverse & Reverse
2006	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1964	Obverse & Reverse
1986	Obverse & Reverse
2006	Obverse & Reverse

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
1987	Obverse & Reverse
2006	Obverse & Reverse

5000 Rupees

Year	Obverse / Reverse	View image
2006	Obverse & Reverse

Notes
Issue of Notes Rs. 1 and Rs. 2 was discontinued as from July 1, 1998 and after replacement with coins, these Notes were to remain in circulation until December 31, 2001.