RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das said here on Thursday that the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) has decided unanimously to keep the policy repo rate unchanged at 6.50 per cent with readiness to act, should the situation so warrant.

Consequently, the standing deposit facility (SDF) rate will remain unchanged at 6.25 per cent and the marginal standing facility (MSF) rate and the bank rate at 6.75 per cent, he said delivering the bimonthly Monetary Policy Statement of the RBI through the RBI’s YouTube channel.

The RBI Governor observed that inflation is above the target and given its current level, the present policy rate can still be regarded as accommodative. Hence, the MPC decided to remain focused on the withdrawal of accommodation.

Noting that economic activity remains resilient amidst global volatility, he informed that India’s real GDP growth for 2023-24 is projected at 6.5 per cent, with Q1 at 7.8 per cent; Q2 at 6.2 per cent; Q3 at 6.1 per cent; and Q4 at 5.9 per cent.

Das said the CPI inflation is projected to moderate to 5.2 per cent for 2023-24; with Q1 at 5.1 per cent; Q2 at 5.4 per cent; Q3 at 5.4 per cent; and Q4 at 5.2 per cent.

The RBI Governor announced five additional measures. He explained that banks in India with IFSC Banking Units (IBUs) were earlier permitted to transact in Indian Rupee (INR) non-deliverable foreign exchange derivative contracts (NDDCs) with non-residents and with other eligible banks having IBUs. Now, banks with IBUs will be permitted to offer NDDCs involving INR to resident users in the onshore market. The Governor informed that this measure will further deepen the forex market in India and provide enhanced flexibility to residents in meeting their hedging requirements.

Das said a secured web-based centralised portal named ‘PRAVAAH’ (Platform for Regulatory Application, Validation, And Authorisation) will be developed, to enable entities to apply for license/authorisation or regulatory approvals from the Reserve Bank. In line with the Union Budget 2023-24 announcement, this will simplify and streamline the current system, wherein these applications are made through both offline and online modes.

The Governor informed that the portal will show time limits for deciding on the applications/approvals sought. This measure will bring greater efficiencies into regulatory processes and facilitate ease of doing business for the regulated entities of the Reserve Bank.

He noted that at present, the depositors or beneficiaries of unclaimed bank deposits of 10 years or more have to go through the websites of multiple banks to locate such deposits. Now, in order to improve and widen the access of depositors/beneficiaries to information on such unclaimed deposits, it has been decided to develop a web portal to enable search across multiple banks for possible unclaimed deposits. This will help depositors/beneficiaries in getting back unclaimed deposits.

Recalling that the Credit Information Companies (CICs) were recently brought under the purview of the Reserve Bank Integrated Ombudsman Scheme (RB-IOS), the Governor announced that the following measures are going to be put in place:

The Governor underlined that the fight against inflation is not yet finished. “Our job is not yet finished and the war against inflation has to continue until we see a durable decline in inflation closer to the target. We stand ready to act appropriately and on time. We are confident that we are on the right track to bring down inflation to the target rate over the medium term.”