RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das Farewell: RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Tuesday bid his farewell as he is all set to demit his office later today. During a press conference, Shaktikanta Das highlighted the three challenges ahead of the RBI and the wider economy – First, he said that restoring inflation growth balance is the most important task ahead of the RBI and the new governor will take it forward. Second, he talked about the changing geoeconomic dynamics. He said that it is important for the RBI to remain alert and agile. Third, he talked about cyber security and its associated risks. Shaktikanta Das said that cyber security is a big challenge for every authority not only in India but all over the world and particularly for a central bank. “In the last 6 years, we have given a lot of attention to cyber security and dealing with associated challenges,” he said.
Further, he said “Our focus in the last 6 years has been to capitalise as much as possible on harnessing the benefits of new technologies and financial inclusion. I am confident of the continuation of these, going forward.”
On the banking sector, he said, “RBI’s supervision of the overall banking system is much sharper than earlier, we do not wait for the house to catch fire; I think the supervision vertical of RBI, the supervisory methods have really improved.”
While speaking at the press conference, Shaktikanta Das said, “My journey was not my personal journey, it was the journey of the governor of the Reserve Bank. I was fortunate to get this opportunity and I have tried to give my best to the institution, to its policies in the best interest of the economy.”
Shaktikanta Das said, “In the last six years, it has been my endeavour to adhere to the principles which I had mentioned when I took over as the RBI governor. You would be aware that we have been holding wide ranging consultations on many issues. In fact, the consultative approach behind all the decisions we have taken in the last six years, is very much evident. In many cases, we hold direct, face-to-face consultations with the stakeholders. In fact, the same approach was followed in the Regulation Review Authority 2.0 where we formed a group of experts to advise the regulation review authority within the RBI.”
He further said that teamwork during his tenure was at a very high level and he received ‘excellent cooperation’ from every member of the RBI team. He also applauded the commitment and teamwork shown by the RBI team and thanked his colleagues at the central bank. He also appreciated and acknowledged the ‘excellent suggestions and valuable inputs’ that the RBI received during its various consultations with stakeholders.
Earlier today, in a series of posts on X (formerly Twitter), Shaktikanta Das thanked the Finance Minister, various stakeholders and his colleagues at the central bank.
He posted, “Will demit office as Governor RBI later today. Thank you everyone for your support and good wishes.”
“Immensely grateful to the Hon’ble PM @narendramodi for giving me this opportunity to serve the country as Governor RBI and for his guidance and encouragement. Benefited a lot from his ideas and thoughts.”
“Heartfelt thanks to Hon’ble FM @nsitharaman for her constant support and backing. The fiscal-monetary coordination was at its best and helped us to deal with the multiple challenges during the last six years.”
“I thank all the stakeholders in the financial sector and in the economy; experts and economists; industry bodies and associations; organisations in the agriculture,cooperative & service sectors for their inputs and policy suggestions.”
“A BIG thank you to the entire Team RBI. Together, we successfully navigated an exceptionally difficult period of unprecedented global shocks. May the RBI grow even taller as an institution of trust and credibility. My best wishes to each one of you.”
Shaktikanta Das was appointed as the 25th RBI Governor in December 2018, after the sudden resignation of Urjit Patel amid a tussle between RBI and the government over the issue of surplus transfer and autonomy of the regulator.