Obverse. Photo © NumisCorner.com
  • 50 Paise 1988-2007, KM# 69, India, Republic
  • 50 Paise 1988-2007, KM# 69, India, Republic
Obverse

Depicts the State Emblem of India with Satyameva Jayate below surrounded by the country name and value.

The State Emblem of India is an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Ashoka at Sarnath, preserved in the Sarnath Museum near Varanasi, India. A representation of Lion Capital of Ashoka was officially adopted on 26 January 1950, the day that India became a republic.

The actual Sarnath capital features four Asiatic lions standing back to back, symbolizing power, courage, confidence and pride, mounted on a circular base. At the bottom is a horse and a bull, and at its centre is a wheel (Dharma Chakra). The abacus is girded with a frieze of sculptures in high relief of The Lion of the North, The Horse of the West, The Bull of the South and The Elephant of the East, separated by intervening wheels, over a lotus in full bloom, exemplifying the fountainhead of life and creative inspiration.

"Satyameva Jayate" (Sanskrit: सत्यमेव जयते satyam-eva jayate; lit. "Truth alone triumphs.") is a part of a mantra from the ancient Indian scripture Mundaka Upanishad. Following the independence of India, it was adopted as the national motto. It is inscribed in script at the base of the Lion Capital of Ashoka and forms an integral part of the national emblem. The emblem and the words "Satyameva Jayate" are inscribed on one side of all Indian currency.

भारत INDIA
सत्यमेव जयते
पैसे 50 PAISE

Reverse

Depicts a map of India in the background with circular Sansad Bhawan (Parliament Building) on top. Date with mintmark (if any) below, country name on the top right.

The Sansad Bhavan (English: Parliament House) is the house of the Parliament of India, which contains the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha located in New Delhi. The shape of the building is circular, which is based on the Ashoka Chakra. At the centre of the building is the Central Chamber, and surrounding this are the semicircular halls that were constructed for the sessions of the Chamber of Princes (now used as the Library Hall), the State Council (now used for the Rajya Sabha), and the Central Legislative Assembly (now used for the Lok Sabha). The building is surrounded by large gardens and the perimeter is fenced off by sandstone railings (jali).

It was designed by the British architects Sir Edwin Lutyens and Sir Herbert Baker in 1912-1913 as part of their wider mandate to construct a new administrative capital city for British India. Construction of the Parliament House began in 1921 and it was completed in 1927.

भारत INDIA
2002

Edge
Characteristics
Material Stainless Steel
Weight 3.79 g
Diameter 22 mm
Thickness 1.45 mm
Shape round
Alignment Medal
Mints
Calcutta Mint (no mintmark)
Hyderabad Mint (★)
Mumbai Mint (♦)
Noida Mint (●)
Ottawa Mint

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