Mumbai:Even as the government is continuing with a phased de-regulation of diesel prices, RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan has urged the Centre to completely de-regulate diesel prices. Rajan on Monday said diesel price de-regulation is especially important in the wake of rising global crude oil prices.
"De-regulation will empower state-owned oil firms to change rates in tandem with crude oil prices like in the case of petrol. In January 2013, the government started a phased de-regulation by allowing up to 50 paise a litre increase in diesel rates every month," Rajan said.
On Prime Minister Narendra Modi's newly introduced 'Jan Dhan' scheme Rajan said, "It is a good scheme, its target should be universal reach and not speed and numbers."
In wake of recent scandals, Rajan called for internal evaluation. "Recent scandals call for better internal evaluation of lending process; banking must become more engaged and informed, he said. "
Rajan also said that India's macroeconomic indicators are improving and inflation has been coming down consistent with the central bank's forecast, but Asia's third-largest economy needs investment growth to pick up.
Rajan, however, said Friday's industrial output and inflation data suggested that recovery was "uneven."
Output from mines, utilities and factories grew by a much slower-than-expected 0.5 per cent year-on-year, government data showed on Friday, down from June's revised 3.9 per cent rise.
Retail inflation, which the RBI tracks for setting lending rates, edged down marginally to 7.8 per cent in August from 7.96 per cent a month earlier.
(With inputs from Reuters)
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