New Delhi, February 07: India can’t afford to be lax about fighting inflation as the nation seeks to slow price gains to 5 per cent or less, central bank Deputy Governor K C Chakrabarty said today.
“You cannot afford to be in any way lax in monitoring inflation and controlling it,” Chakrabarty said in an interview in Sydney. “We would not like to have more than 4 or 5 per cent inflation. That’s the challenge.”
Central Bank Governor Duvvuri Subbarao raised the amount lenders are required to set aside as reserves last month to prevent excess money in the banking system from fanning price gains. India’s wholesale-food inflation rate rose to 17.56 percent in the week to January 23, moving closer to an 11-year high and fueling speculation that Subbarao may raise interest rates.
–PTI