Capital cushion needed amid global uncertainty: RBI governor Urjit Patel

The RBI governor told the members of Parliament that credit growth was 15 per cent and that the impact of November 2016 demonetisation had a transient impact on the economy

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Urjit Patel on Tuesday told a parliamentary panel that the central bank needed to keep a capital cushion in view of global financial uncertainty. 

The remarks by Patel, who appeared before the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance, assume significance as the Centre and the RBI are engaged in negotiations to fix the economic capital framework of the central bank.  

Faced with questions on controversial issues like the government invoking Section 7 of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Act and the autonomy of the central bank, Patel told the 31-member committee that he would submit written replies. The panel gave Patel 10-15 days to respond, sources said.   

“He stayed clear of controversial questions like the government invoking special powers. Instead, he gave intelligent replies, without saying anything,” a source said.

Patel made a presentation on the state of the Indian as well as global economy, and several members of the panel asked him questions. His views on the economy were optimistic, sources said. Patel, who appeared before the 31-member committee, said the economy would get a boost from oil prices cooling off from four-year highs, and said fundamentals were “robust”. 

The RBI governor also told the members of Parliament that credit growth was 15 per cent and that the impact of November 2016 demonetisation had a transient impact on the economy.

They also asked questions on the implementation of the Basel III capital adequacy norms for banks. To this, Patel replied that adherence to the global norms was India’s commitment to G-20 nations.