Union Minister of State for Finance Santosh Gangwar on Tuesday said that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) was focussing all efforts to bridge the shortfall of the new Rs 500 currency notes.

“There is a shortfall of Rs 500 notes. But RBI is making all efforts and printing is on in full force. The focus is now on printing Rs 500 notes,” Gangwar told CNBC TV18 in an interview.

He said it takes about 25 days for one lot of notes to be printed but still anywhere between 20,000-35,000 notes are being printed daily. Gangwar however refused to divulge the exact number.

“(As many as) 20,000-35,000 notes are being printed daily. I cannot tell you the exact figure. It takes 25 days for one note to be printed,” he said.

The government had on November 8 announced the demonetisation of Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes with the aim of curbing black money and corruption.