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RBI PouchFood and Shelter For All Coin Value (1978)
The Food and Shelter For All commemorative was struck in 1978 in 5 Paise and 10 Paise. The reference catalogue lists 15 catalogued varieties of it, and this is what it records.
What the catalogue says it is worth
Condition decides it, and the gap is wide. For the 15 varieties the catalogue prices at every grade, a worn example in Fine condition is listed between ₹5 and ₹10, and the same coins uncirculated between ₹25 and ₹50,000.
If yours came out of a drawer or a pocket rather than a sealed mint set, the Fine column is the one that applies to it. That is the single most common reason a coin is worth far less than its owner expects.
Read those figures before anything else. The numbers circulating online for this coin are not what the catalogue records, and no dealer works from them.
Every catalogued variety, by grade
All 15 varieties are aluminium – magnesium. Prices below are the catalogue’s, per grade.
| Year | Denomination | Mint | Fine | Very Fine | Extremely Fine | UNC | Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Bombay (Mumbai Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Hyderabad Mint | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹25 | ₹150 | Common |
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Bombay (Mumbai Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 10 Paise | Hyderabad Mint | ₹5 | ₹15 | ₹25 | ₹150 | Scarce |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Bombay (Mumbai Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Hyderabad Mint | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | ₹100 | Scarce |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Bombay (Mumbai Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Hyderabad Mint | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Bombay (Mumbai Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
| 1978 | 5 Paise | Hyderabad Mint | ₹5 | ₹10 | ₹15 | ₹50 | Common |
Which column applies to your coin
- Fine — clearly worn. The design reads, but the fine detail in hair, lettering or leaves has flattened. Most coins that spent time in circulation are here or below.
- Very Fine — moderate wear on the high points only; most detail still sharp.
- Extremely Fine — light wear visible only on the highest points, with much of the original surface still present.
- UNC — uncirculated. No wear at all, because it never circulated. Usually this means it came from a mint set and was never spent.
Grading is judged by eye and people are generous with their own coins. If you are deciding between two columns, the lower one is nearly always the right answer.
How to read the mint mark
This issue came from Bombay (Mumbai Mint), Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint), Hyderabad Mint. The mark sits under the year on the coin: a diamond or dot for Mumbai, a star for Hyderabad, nothing at all for Kolkata, a solid dot for Noida. Year and mint together identify a variety; neither does it alone.
What a catalogue figure is, and is not
It is a reference for one variety at one stated grade, not an offer and not a market price. What a specific coin fetches depends on who wants that exact piece on that day, and on a condition assessment that usually has to be seen rather than described. Two coins of the same year and mint can sit two columns apart in the table above.
Common questions
What is the Food and Shelter For All coin worth?
The reference catalogue records 15 varieties. For the 15 priced at every grade, a worn example in Fine condition is listed between ₹5 and ₹10, and the same coins uncirculated between ₹25 and ₹50,000. A catalogue figure is a reference for one variety at one grade, not an offer.
How many Food and Shelter For All coin varieties are there?
The catalogue records 15 varieties of it, struck in 1978 in 5 Paise and 10 Paise. They came from Bombay (Mumbai Mint), Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) and Hyderabad Mint.
Does condition change what the Food and Shelter For All coin is worth?
Yes, and by more than most owners expect. The same varieties are listed between ₹5 and ₹10 in Fine condition and between ₹25 and ₹50,000 uncirculated – for a typical variety the uncirculated figure is about 10.0 times the worn one. A coin that came out of a pocket or a drawer is not an uncirculated coin, and when you are deciding between two grades the lower one is nearly always right.
How do I identify which Food and Shelter For All coin I have?
Read the year and the mint mark together – neither identifies a variety on its own. The mark sits under the year on the coin: a diamond or dot for Mumbai, a star for Hyderabad, nothing at all for Kolkata, a solid dot for Noida. This issue came from Bombay (Mumbai Mint), Calcutta (Kolkatta Mint) and Hyderabad Mint.
Where this leaves you
If you are holding one, compare it against the table above by year and mint, and judge the condition strictly. Every other denomination is catalogued here, and if you decide to part with it, this explains how selling actually works.
