5 Things to Know About Sanjay Malhotra, The Newly Appointed RBI Governor

Who is Sanjay Malhotra: Sanjay Malhotra, an IAS officer from the 1990 batch of the Rajasthan cadre, has been named the new Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He will be succeeding Shaktikanta Das. Shaktikanta Das will demit the office on Tuesday after completing six years as the 25th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. He was appointed as the Governor on December 12, 2018, after the abrupt exit of Urjit Patel.

5 Things to Know About Sanjay Malhotra, the Newly Appointed RBI Governor

• A Veteran IAS Officer: Sanjay Malhotra, a distinguished 1990-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the Rajasthan cadre, has been appointed as the 26th Governor of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). He succeeds Shaktikanta Das, whose tenure has ended.
• Experience in the Ministry of Finance: Before his appointment as RBI Governor, Malhotra served as the Revenue Secretary at the Ministry of Finance. During his time in this role, he was instrumental in shaping economic policies, particularly those related to taxation and fiscal reforms.
• Leadership at REC Limited: Earlier in his career, Malhotra was the Chairman and Managing Director of REC Limited, a government-owned company that focuses on financing power sector projects. This position honed his leadership skills and expanded his expertise in managing large-scale financial operations.
• A Key Figure in GST Reforms: Sanjay Malhotra has considerable experience with Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. He served as the ex-officio Secretary to the GST Council, contributing to policy formulation and the successful implementation of GST across India.
• Academic Credentials: Malhotra holds an impressive academic background. He is an alumnus of the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kanpur and has earned a Master's degree in Public Policy from Princeton University in the USA.      

Shaktikanta Das to Demit Office on Dec 10

Das has been twice ranked as the top central banker by the US-based Global Finance magazine. He chaired his last meeting of the rate-setting panel -- Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) -- last week. "In the last few years, we have traversed one of the most difficult periods in the history of the Indian economy, and perhaps, in the global economy also. It was a period of relentless turbulence and jolts.

"As a country, we can derive satisfaction that the Indian economy has not just navigated this period of trials successfully but also emerged stronger. As we strive together towards making India a developed economy, I recall what I had said in my statement of February 8, 2023, wherein I had quoted Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: '...never lose your faith in the destiny of India'," Das said while unveiling the monetary policy on December 6.

Soon after taking charge of the Mint Street office, he provided confidence to the market shaken by the sudden resignation of Patel amid a tussle between RBI and the government over the issue of surplus transfer. He not only assuaged the concerns of the market but deftly sorted out issues related to surplus transfer to the government.

Barely a year after Das took charge as the RBI governor, Covid hit the world. As a key economic policymaker, Das faced challenging times in managing the disruptions caused by the lockdown. He chose to cut the policy repo rate to a historic low of 4 per cent, continuing with the low-interest rate regime for almost two years to help the economy hit badly by lockdowns.

With the revival of the economy hit by COVID-19, the Das-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) was quick to raise interest rates starting May 2022 to avoid overheating the economy and keep inflation under check. His deft handling of difficult monetary situations, checking inflation and boosting growth earned him re-appointment. The government extended his tenure for another three years in 2021. Das was instrumental in ensuring that economic growth remains over 7 per cent in the last 4 years of his six-year term.