Finance Ministry says rupee is not in 'shambles'

Chief Economic Advisor Raghuram Rajan on Thursday emphasized that the rupee is not in 'shambles', and said that the Finance Ministry, RBI and SEBI are watching the developments closely and would take appropriate steps.

"The Finance Ministry, the RBI (Reserve Bank of India) and SEBI (Securities Exchange Board of India) are watching developments closely and would take action, as appropriate. We are not, let me emphasise, we are not short of actions and instruments, if and when the need arises," said Rajan, when asked what steps the government is contemplating to check rupee which slid to an all time low of 59.93 to a dollar today.

"We should not be overly pessimistic, we sort of swing from waves of optimism to pessimism. There is nothing particularly wrong with the rupee right now. Yes, it has depreciated but that is true of every emerging market currency at this point. And I believe that over time matters will stabilize," he added.

The rupee hit a life time low of 59.93 to a dollar in early trade today. It later recovered ground and was trading at around 59.7 to a dollar in noon trade.