Sanjay Malhotra, the newly appointed governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Wednesday said that stability, trust and growth are the three pillars of the economy and that the central bank will continue to strive towards maintaining and strengthening these principles.
During a press conference today, Sanjay Malhotra said, “All these three broad themes are very pertinent for the economy as we are entering into ‘Amritkaal’ and to realise the vision of ‘Viksit Bharat’ as we are entering into 2047.” He added that the RBI has a huge responsibility in ensuring that the growth that the country is showing continues. While maintaining the importance and significance of stability, he said, “In my previous role too, we have been trying to give stability and continuity in policy, whether it is taxation policy, fiscal policy or monetary policy. All businesses, all people need this stability and continuity.” Elaborating on the third pillar, Sanjay Malhotra said, “I can assure you that whatever decisions are made by this institution, they will be taken with public interest in mind. So that the trust that people have reposed in this intuition, not only continues but is strengthened.”
While emphasising on the importance of stability, Sanjay Malhotra said that the RBI needs to be aware of the constantly changing world with geopolitical tension, impact of climate change and political uncertainty around the world. “As other institutions, we have to be cautious of this fact that while we do maintain continuity and stability and we cannot be stuck to it, we have to be alert and agile to meet these challenges while we maintain a policy continuity,” he said.
The newly appointed RBI governor said, “I do believe that one of the most important roles of the central bank is to spread financial inclusion with the banking and non banking sector. We have traveled a lot in financial inclusion with regard to making the banks accessible to every nook and corner of the country but there is still more to be done. And so, we will continue to collaborate with all our stakeholders, especially the financial regulators.”
Another key pillar, he added, is use of technology. “The central bank also has made a big contribution in this regard especially when we talked about UPI, it has created a space not in our country but internationally. It’s important how we are going to use technology for the betterment of the economy and the country, to reduce costs, to make financial inclusion more accessible, etc. This is one key pillar that we will work on and for this, innovation will be the key. We will also have to be cautious of the risks that it may entail and so, we will keep putting in requisite guardrails without stopping innovation.”
He also talked about the importance of consultations in making any key announcement. “We need to be cautious that we do not have the monopoly of all knowledge and so information, knowledge and expertise is available outside as well – internationally or nationally. So consultation is another one key pillar of our policy making which RBI will go with, going forward.”
Sanjay Malhotra took charge as the 26th governor of the central bank today. He also commended the work done by the RBI over the years. He said, “RBI has done some commendable work over the years and it’s all because of the hard work and sheer diligence, upholding values of public service of staff, senior management and my predecessor Shaktikanta Das. I will continue to uphold this legacy.”
“It’s my first day and if I start playing my shots from Day 1, I don’t think it would be appropriate on my part,” he said.