1986 20 Paise Coin Value

The catalogue records 3 catalogued varieties of the 20 Paise for 1986, struck at Bombay (Mumbai Mint), Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint), Hyderabad Mint.

Is the 1986 one the rare one?

No. Every variety struck in 1986 is marked Common. There is no rare mint and no key variety for this denomination in this year. That is a definite answer, and it is worth more than a hopeful one.

Every 1986 variety, by mint

Mint	Rarity	Metal	Weight	Diameter	Thickness
Bombay (Mumbai Mint)	Common	Aluminium – Magnesium	2.2 grams	26.00 mm	1.7 mm
Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint)	Common	Aluminium – Magnesium	2.2 grams	26.00 mm	1.7 mm
Hyderabad Mint	Common	Aluminium – Magnesium	2.2 grams	26.00 mm	1.7 mm

Check it against your own coin

Every 1986 variety weighs 2.2 grams and measures 26.00 mm across, hexagonal. If yours is noticeably lighter or smaller it is not a 1986 20 Paise, whatever the date reads as.

Weigh it on any scale that reads to a tenth of a gram, and measure the diameter across the widest point. Wear removes very little weight, so a coin more than a few percent off the figure above is usually a different issue rather than a worn one.

Reading the mint mark on your coin

The mark sits under the year. A star is Hyderabad, a diamond or dot is Mumbai, a solid dot is Noida, and no mark at all is Kolkata. On a 1986 20 Paise that mark is the whole question, because the year on its own does not separate one variety from another.

What it is worth

The catalogue records no price for any 1986 variety. That is not missing data. It is the catalogue saying the coin was struck in numbers large enough that an ordinary example carries no collector premium, whichever mint it came from.

Scarce is not the same as valuable. It means fewer were struck or fewer survived, which is a reason for a collector to look twice, not a price.

Every other year and denomination is catalogued here, and this explains how selling actually works.