§ Mr. FREWENasked the Under-Secretary of State for India if he will state how much silver was purchased and was coined by the Government of India in the financial year 1906–7; what was the profit to the Indian Government on that emission; what was the estimated production of silver from the world's mines during that year; what, approximately, was the world's consumption of silver during that year in the arts and manufactures; how much silver has been purchased and coined by the Indian Government during the present financial year; how much profit to the Indian revenue would have accrued if the Government had bought and coined during this year, at the present price of silver bullion, as much silver as was purchased in the year 1906–7; will he state what is the present specific duty imposed on silver bullion imported into India, and what is this duty ad valorem at the present price of silver; whether, seeing that silver bullion is the raw material of one of the most beautiful and important handicrafts in India, there is any prospect of the existing high tariff on silver being remitted or reduced; and what amount of rupee notes has been issued for India during the past two financial years, and how is this paper currency secured?
§ Mr. MONTAGUThe value of purchased silver received during 1906–7 in the Calcutta and Bombay mints was £11,628,844. The silver coinage of the year was partly from purchased silver and partly from defective and uncurrent coin which was re- 1483W coined in accordance with practice. The total amounted to Rs.26,08,57,405. The profit on coinage during the year was £4,014,426. The Secretary of State is not in a position to give an estimate of the world's production of silver and the world's consumption in arts and manufactures in 1906–7. He is concerned with the comparatively limited undertaking of governing India. The Government of India has not purchased any silver in 1910–11. Its silver coinage operations during the year have consisted in the recoinage of old rupees and the issue of fractional silver currency. The value of the issues from the mint due to these operations was, in the first ten months of the year, Rs.1,87,67,143. If £11,628,844 worth of silver had been bought for coinage in 1910–11 at the present price and coined, and if the public demand had been sufficient to absorb the additional rupees, the profit on the operation would have been about £7,750,000. But the facts of the year show that the additional rupees would not have been absorbed, so that the immediate financial result would have been to lock up £11,628,844 in a temporarily unserviceable form. The Import Duty on silver in India is fourpence per ounce, equivalent at the present price of silver to about 16.45 per cent. There is no intention of reducing it. The increase in the circulation of currency notes from 28th February, 1909, to 28th February, 1911, was Rs.9,66,11,765. The constitution of the paper currency reserve on the latter date was as follows:—
Rs. Silver Coin … 26,06,72,707 Gold Coin and Bullion … 15,40,02,457 Silver Bullion … 7,86,970 Securities … 11,99,99,946 Rs.53,54,62,080