Vikash Sharma

The bitter experiences of past lockdowns induced by the Covid-19 pandemic are still fresh in the minds of people across the country. However, the period also attributed towards bringing in some positive changes in the lifestyles of people who started adapting various alternative means and habits to change their lifestyle.

Among the various hobbies people picked up during the lockdown period, many got hitched to collecting coins. Over various social media platforms, many enthusiasts started organising their coin albums on ‘Chillar’ which otherwise used to be dumped in a corner of their house or stored in children’s piggy bank.

Several people have been successful in completing coin sets from the common circulation coins which are easily available without spending extra bucks. New collectors though are trying their level best to complete their collection and looking for rare and scarce coins.

However, such rare or uncirculated coins (UNC) are costly and the value of some of those might go up to some thousand or even lakhs of rupees.

Here is the top 10 list of Rs 1 coins and their estimated price for UNC coins:

1.1982 Rs 1 coin: This Bombay mint coin was released on an experimental basis and is less in common circulation for which its price is quite high. A collector will have to shell price ranging between Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 for the UNC coin.

2. Rs 1 coin issued by Noida mint in 1991: Earlier there was no clarity on the existence of the coin. But one can easily get the coin from some collectors. However, it is difficult to get the coin in UNC condition. The price for this coin, if you buy from some coin collectors, may range between Rs 20,000 to Rs 30,000.

3. The Rs 1 coin (pure nickel) issued by Bombay mint in 1970 is now very rare to find these days. From any coin dealer, one can get this uncirculated coin at a price between Rs 5,000 and Rs 6,000. However, one needs to be extra cautious as many fake or forged coins are also doing rounds.

4. 1954 Rs 1 coin which was issued by Bombay mint comes under rare category. Coin collectors might have to pay Rs 1,500 to Rs 2,000 to get this coin in uncirculated condition from coin collectors and dealers for a single coin.

5. The Rs 1 coin in ‘Unity in Diversity’ theme is the first coin to be issued in the cross series by Bombay mint in 2004. This comes under the rare category of coins. However, the coins of the same denomination issued in 2005 and 2006 are common coins. The price of the 2004 Rs 1 coin ranges between Rs 350 and Rs 400 for the UNC one. Similarly, the price of the 1988 Rs 1 coin (Noida mint) UNC is between Rs 350 to Rs 400.

6. The 1986 Rs 1 definite coin issued by the Hyderabad mint falls under the scarce category and its UNC price is Rs 300 per coin. 7. The UNC price for the 1950 Rs 1 coin (Bombay mint), weighing 11.66 grams ranges between Rs 250 to Rs 300.

8. To add the big 1 rupee 1962 coin issued by Kolkata mint, one has to pay anything between Rs 150 to Rs 200 for the UNC grade coin.

9. The 1984 Hyderabad mint coin (copper nickel) UNC coin price is between Rs 100 to Rs 150. The coins issued by Bombay and Kolkata mint are commonly available.

10. Rs 1 coins issued in 1989, 1990 (6 gram weight) were in common circulation and issued by Bombay, Kolkata and Hyderabad mints. But the Noida mint coins are now scarce in the market. For the UNC condition coin, one might have to pay Rs 100 per coin.

Disclaimer: (This report is compiled based on the information shared by several coin collectors on social media platforms. OTV doesn’t endorse any buy and sell of coins/currencies as per RBI directive).

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