2 rupaye sekda means ₹2 of interest on every ₹100, every month. That is 2% a month, or 24% a year at simple interest: ₹200 a month on ₹10,000 and ₹2,000 a month on ₹1,00,000.
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What does rupaye sekda mean?
Sekda (सैकड़ा) means "a hundred", so rupaye sekda is rupees per hundred. When a lender says 2 rupaye sekda, he means ₹2 of interest on every ₹100 you borrow, for every month you keep it. You will also hear "do rupaye sekda", "₹2 sekda" or just "2 rupaye byaj".
This is the usual way rates are quoted in informal lending: between relatives and friends, by shopkeepers and traders, and by moneylenders. Banks quote a yearly percent instead, which is why the two are so often mixed up.
Two things are built into the phrase without being said. The rate is per month, and it is charged on the original amount (simple interest), not on interest that has piled up. If your deal is different on either point, say so and write it down.
Put another way, ₹2 per ₹100 is the same as 2 paise on every rupee, every month.
2 taka byaj: the same as 2 rupaye sekda
"Taka" is an old word for a rupee, so 2 taka byaj (or 2 taka sood) is read the same way: ₹2 on every ₹100 each month, 24% a year. The word is used loosely, so confirm "per ₹100, per month" before you agree.
Sekda to percent: the conversion
Because sekda already means "per hundred", the number of rupees is the percent a month. For the yearly rate, multiply by 12.
Yearly rate (%) = sekda × 12
Simple interest. The monthly rate in percent is the sekda number itself.
- 1 rupaye sekda = 1% a month = 12% a year. On ₹1,00,000 that is ₹1,000 a month, ₹12,000 a year.
- 1.5 rupaye sekda (dedh rupaya) = 1.5% a month = 18% a year.
- 2 rupaye sekda = 2% a month = 24% a year. On ₹1,00,000 that is ₹2,000 a month, ₹24,000 a year, and ₹66.67 a day (a day is 1/30 of a month; see the interest per day calculator).
- 3 rupaye sekda = 3% a month = 36% a year.
For the monthly interest on any amount, divide the amount by 100 and multiply by the sekda. On ₹25,000 at ₹2 sekda: 25,000 ÷ 100 = 250, and 250 × 2 = ₹500 a month.
Sekda table: ₹0.5 to ₹10 sekda in percent
Simple interest on ₹1,00,000. The Hindi fractions are named: sawa is 1¼, dedh 1½, paune do 1¾ and dhai 2½. For another amount, scale it: ₹50,000 is half, ₹2,00,000 is double.
| Sekda | % a month | % a year | ₹1 lakh, 1 month | ₹1 lakh, 1 year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ₹0.5 | 0.5% | 6% | ₹500 | ₹6,000 |
| ₹0.75 | 0.75% | 9% | ₹750 | ₹9,000 |
| ₹1 | 1% | 12% | ₹1,000 | ₹12,000 |
| ₹1.25 (sawa) | 1.25% | 15% | ₹1,250 | ₹15,000 |
| ₹1.5 (dedh) | 1.5% | 18% | ₹1,500 | ₹18,000 |
| ₹1.75 (paune do) | 1.75% | 21% | ₹1,750 | ₹21,000 |
| ₹2 | 2% | 24% | ₹2,000 | ₹24,000 |
| ₹2.5 (dhai) | 2.5% | 30% | ₹2,500 | ₹30,000 |
| ₹3 | 3% | 36% | ₹3,000 | ₹36,000 |
| ₹4 | 4% | 48% | ₹4,000 | ₹48,000 |
| ₹5 | 5% | 60% | ₹5,000 | ₹60,000 |
| ₹6 | 6% | 72% | ₹6,000 | ₹72,000 |
| ₹8 | 8% | 96% | ₹8,000 | ₹96,000 |
| ₹10 | 10% | 120% | ₹10,000 | ₹1,20,000 |
Yearly percent to sekda
Going the other way, divide the yearly rate by 12. Some rates do not divide evenly; round them for talking, but use the exact rate when you work out the money.
- 9% a year = ₹0.75 sekda
- 10% a year = about ₹0.83 sekda
- 12% a year = ₹1 sekda
- 15% a year = ₹1.25 sekda
- 18% a year = ₹1.5 sekda
- 24% a year = ₹2 sekda
- 36% a year = ₹3 sekda
Is sekda per month or per year?
Per month. A sekda rate is a monthly rate unless someone clearly says otherwise. The trouble starts when "2 percent" is said without a unit: to a lender it means 2% a month, which is 24% a year, while someone used to bank rates may hear 2% a year. That is a twelve-fold gap.
So always say it in full: "₹2 sekda a month" or "24% a year". Writing both on the paper, like "₹2 sekda (24% a year)", ends the argument before it starts.
When interest is added to the principal
The ×12 rule holds for simple interest, where interest is paid or kept aside and never earns interest itself. If unpaid interest is added to the principal every month (chakravriddhi byaj, or compound interest), the year costs more.
₹1,00,000 at ₹2 sekda, compounded every month, grows to ₹1,26,824.18 in a year: ₹26,824.18 of interest, or 26.82%, instead of ₹24,000. See simple vs compound interest for the full picture.
How sekda compares with a bank loan rate
Banks quote a yearly rate on a reducing balance. Each month they charge interest only on what you still owe, and the EMI pays that interest plus some principal. A bank rate of 12% a year is 1% a month on the balance: exactly ₹1 sekda.
On a ₹1,00,000 bank loan at 12% for 12 months, the first month's interest is ₹1,000, the same as ₹1 sekda on ₹1,00,000. After that the balance falls, so the rupees fall, but the cost per rupee per month stays the same.
So the fair comparison is: a sekda loan whose interest you pay every month costs the same per rupee per month as a bank loan at sekda × 12, reducing. ₹2 sekda is like a bank loan at 24% a year, 2 times the cost of a 12% bank loan.
Before you agree a sekda rate
- Ask whether the rate is per month, and on the original amount only.
- Ask whether unpaid interest will be added to the principal, and how often.
- Write the rate both ways on the paper, e.g. "₹2 sekda a month (24% a year)".
- Note the date the money changed hands. Interest runs from that day: see how to calculate byaj for months and days.
6 short answersRupaye sekda meaning: common questions
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What does sekda (saikda) mean in English?
Sekda (सैकड़ा, also written saikda or sainkda) means a hundred, the same word as in ikai, dahai, saikda: units, tens, hundreds. In lending, "₹2 sekda" means ₹2 for every hundred rupees, and by custom for every month. So rupaye sekda is best put in English as rupees per ₹100 per month.
What is the difference between sekda and percent?
Both mean "per hundred", so ₹2 sekda is 2 out of every 100. The difference is the time. A sekda rate is per month unless someone says otherwise, while a percent rate, especially from a bank, is usually per year. That is why ₹2 sekda is 24% a year, not 2%. Write the rate both ways on the paper.
How much is 2 rupees interest on ₹10,000, ₹50,000 or ₹2 lakh?
"2 rupees interest" is the same as 2 rupaye sekda: ₹2 on every ₹100 each month. So ₹10,000 earns ₹200 a month, ₹50,000 earns ₹1,000 and ₹2,00,000 earns ₹4,000. Over a year at simple interest that is ₹2,400, ₹12,000 and ₹48,000. For any other amount, see the byaj chart.
How much is 3, 5 or 10 rupaye sekda?
₹3 sekda is 3% a month, or 36% a year; ₹5 sekda is 60% and ₹10 sekda is 120% a year, all at simple interest. On ₹1,00,000 that is ₹3,000, ₹5,000 and ₹10,000 a month. At such rates the byaj soon equals the loan itself: in 20 months at ₹5 sekda, and 10 months at ₹10. See the damdupat rule.
What do sawa, dedh and dhai rupaye sekda mean?
They are Hindi fractions: sawa is 1¼, dedh 1½, paune do 1¾ and dhai 2½. So sawa rupaya sekda is ₹1.25 on every ₹100 a month (15% a year), dedh is ₹1.50 (18%), paune do ₹1.75 (21%) and dhai ₹2.50 (30%). On ₹1,00,000 they come to ₹1,250, ₹1,500, ₹1,750 and ₹2,500 a month.
What does "2 taka byaj" mean?
"Taka" is an old word for a rupee, so 2 taka byaj, or 2 taka sood, is read the same as 2 rupaye sekda: ₹2 on every ₹100 each month. That is 2% a month, or 24% a year at simple interest. Because the word is used loosely, confirm that the rate is per ₹100 and per month before you agree.