Cheques will have more security features like water marks and invisible logo with the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) deciding to ask banks to take additional measures to prevent forgeries and frauds.
Besides additional security features, the cheques being issued by commercial banks and rural banks will be of standard size, said an RBI circular which was communicated to the heads of all banks.
"It has ... Been decided to prescribe certain benchmarks towards achieving standardisation of cheques issued by banks across the country," it added.
The new features would include use of quality paper, water mark and printing of banks' logos in invisible ink, RBI said, adding "homogeneity of security features is expected to act as a deterrent against cheque frauds".
RBI said "Cheque Truncation System-2010 Standard" will be introduced after ascertaining the readiness of the banks to adopt it.
The proposed format is based on the recommendations of the Working Group, which was set up by the RBI to examine standardisation of cheques and enhancement of security features.
The set of minimum security features, which will include standard size, clutter free background, use of ultra violet images etc, would "ensure uniformity all cheque forms issued by banks in the country".
RBI further said that during April-December 2009, clearing houses in the country have processed on an average around 45 lakh cheques every day.
"Several measures have been initiated by the Reserve Bank of India to ensure that this retail payment product functions in a safe and efficient manner," it added.
RBI had earlier in mid-eighties introduced Magnetic Ink Character Recognition (MICR) technology with a view to expediting clearance of cheques. The initiative has helped in handling growing volume of cheque transaction.
Over a period of time, banks have added a variety of patterns and design of cheque forms to aid segmentation, branding, identification, and also incorporated a number of security features to reduce the incidence of cheque misuse, tempering, alterations, etc.