RBI -Projects India’s Real GDP Growth For Current Fiscal At 6.9%

The Reserve Bank of India has kept interest rates unchanged at 5.25 percent. Announcing the first bi-monthly monetary policy for the current fiscal, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra today said that the Monetary Policy Committee has unanimously decided to retain the repo rate at 5.25 per cent with a neutral stance.

Mr Malhotra said, ‘Persistently elevated energy prices due to the West Asia conflict and possible El Niño conditions pose upside risks to inflation.’

On the West Asia conflict, RBI has taken a wait-and-watch approach, citing the changing circumstances and the evolving growth-inflation outlook.

Accordingly, the Monetary Policy Committee voted to keep the policy rate unchanged even as it remains vigilant, closely monitoring incoming information and assessing the balance of risks.

Governor said that the West Asia conflict will adversely impact growth. He added that higher input costs associated with an increase in energy prices and international freight and insurance costs, along with supply-chain disruptions, could constrain the availability of key inputs for downstream sectors, thus impairing growth.

He added that the fundamentals of the Indian economy are on a stronger footing, providing it with greater resilience to withstand shocks now than in the past.

He said that several measures taken by the government, targeted at supporting exports and protecting supply chains, should mitigate the adverse impact of the conflict.

Governor has noted that, despite stronger macroeconomic fundamentals, the Indian rupee in 2025-26 depreciated more than the average in the previous years.

He reiterated that the exchange rate policy remains unchanged. He added that intervention in the foreign exchange market is aimed at smoothening excessive and disruptive volatility without targeting any specific level or band for the exchange rate. (UPDATED ON 8TH APRIL 2026)