The Ministry of Finance on Tuesday dismissed as 'false, misleading and baseless' reports and social media claims suggesting that the government was planning to introduce a gold monetisation scheme for temple trusts and religious institutions across the country. According to the official clarification, certain media reports and social media posts were falsely claiming that the Centre was planning to issue gold bonds to temples in exchange for temple gold reserves or had approved a proposal for monetisation of temple gold holdings. The government has explicitly stated that there is no proposal under consideration to monetise gold owned by temple trusts or religious institutions in India, with officials describing all such reports and speculations as misleading, fabricated and entirely baseless. In a post on X, the ministry emphasized that speculation and rumours suggesting that the Government is planning to introduce monetisation scheme for Gold held by temple trusts, or any religious institution, across the country are completely false, misleading and without any basis.
The government also rejected claims that gold plates installed on temple towers, doors or other temple structures would be treated as 'Strategic Gold Reserves of India'. As reported by the Ministry of Finance, the statement clarified that such claims are 'false, misleading, and entirely baseless'. The ministry emphasized that it is clarified that claims suggesting that gold plates on temple towers, doors, or other temple structures will be considered as 'Strategic Gold Reserves of India' are false, misleading, and entirely baseless. The government has explicitly rejected this rumour, stating it is imaginary and untrue that gold coatings on temple towers, doors, or other structures would be treated as part of India's strategic gold reserves. The ministry emphasized that any such policy announcement would be communicated through official press releases, government websites and verified public communication platforms.
The government urged citizens not to believe or circulate such rumours, warning that the spread of unverified information could create unnecessary confusion and mislead the public. According to the official statement, the government has appealed to citizens not to trust or circulate unverified claims and misleading information, stating that spreading false reports without confirmation can create unnecessary confusion in society and mislead people. The Finance Ministry specifically urged citizens to avoid sharing unverified information related to government policies and schemes, warning that such rumours could create unnecessary confusion among the public. The government advised people to rely only on official communications issued through authorised channels for information related to policy decisions and government schemes. The ministry emphasized that authentic information regarding policies and official decisions is shared only through official press releases, government websites and verified public communication platforms.
This denial follows the government's earlier stance defending India's textile recycling ecosystem against what it termed 'misleading' international media portrayals. As reported by the ministry, the government had defended India's textile recycling ecosystem, stating that the country has one of the world's largest textile recovery and recycling networks supported by long-established reuse and repurposing systems. The government had also responded to recent foreign media reports focusing on clusters such as Panipat, which selectively highlighted environmental and occupational concerns while ignoring the sector's progress in sustainability, regulation and technology adoption. The latest clarification represents another instance where the Centre has pushed back against what it described as misleading narratives, demonstrating the government's commitment to addressing speculation and ensuring accurate information reaches the public.
