Sanjay Malhotra takes charge as RBI Governor

The 26th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Sanjay Malhotra, took office on Wednesday, December 11. Malhotra has been appointed the RBI Governor for three years with effect from December 11. Malhotra takes over from Shaktikanta Das, who demitted office the previous day after holding the position for six years. 

Shri Sanjay Malhotra takes charge as the 26th Governor of Reserve Bank of India for the next 3 years w.e.f December 11, 2024#RBI #rbigovernor #sanjaymalhotra #rbitoday pic.twitter.com/aa7UdIcWIS

— ReserveBankOfIndia (@RBI) December 11, 2024

Malhotra was welcomed by Deputy Governors Swaminathan J, M Rajeshwar Rao and T Rabi Sankar, among other senior RBI officials.

The new RBI Governor is scheduled to address a press conference at 3 pm on Wednesday, the central bank wrote on microblogging site X (formerly Twitter).

Governor Shri Sanjay Malhotra, will hold a press conference today, December 11, 2024, at 3:00 PM. Watch this page for updates.#RBI #rbigovernor #sanjaymalhotra #rbitoday

— ReserveBankOfIndia (@RBI) December 11, 2024

Malhotra, a career bureaucrat, arrived at the central bank's headquarters on Wednesday morning. In his first press conference as the RBI Governor, Malhotra is widely expected to spell out his focus areas.

Prior to assuming office for the top role at the banking regulator, Malhotra served as Revenue Secretary.

He is a 1990 batch Rajasthan Cadre IAS Officer. 

His appointment as the RBI Government comes at a time when the country's GDP growth has slowed to a seven-quarter low while consumer inflation has breached the upper end of the central bank's tolerance band of 200 basis points around its 4.0 per cent medium-term target.

Official data released last month showed GDP growth stood at 5.4 per cent in the September quarter, days after consumer inflation was recorded at 6.21 per cent in October. 

The RBI tracks consumer inflation—also known as retail inflation—primarily to formulate its monetary policy while ensuring healthy growth.  

Many economists expect the RBI to cut interest rates in the next bi-monthly review of the Monetary Policy Committee, the RBI's top rate-deciding panel chaired by the RBI Governor.

With Das as the RBI Governor, the central bank maintained a status quo on the repo rate for 11 policy reviews in a row.

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