13 October,2026 03:35 PM IST | New Delhi | mid-day online correspondent
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. File Picture.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday said the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) may take further steps to prevent excessive volatility in the domestic currency, according to news agency PTI.
She noted that the rupee has depreciated "significantly" over the past one and a half year and said the rupee has reached a low against the US dollar, and the financial regulator is taking efforts to ensure that the domestic currency stays stable.
"They (RBI) are not trying to fix the rupee. They are trying to stop the volatility. And for that, there is a lot of effort from the RBI side. So, these efforts from the RBI... will continue not to...fix the rupee. We would appreciate it if the rupee finds its own (value)," she said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum 2026.
"I'm sure there are efforts which the RBI would take further to make sure that the rupee doesn't become too volatile," she added.
The minister stated that India's fundamentals are fine, with sound foreign exchange reserves.
She pointed out that most of the rupee's volatility is stemming from external challenges, while the government is ensuring that macroeconomic fundamentals remain sound within the country.
"... fiscal discipline is not going to be a matter which should worry investors. But as regards the rupee, and as regards the way it is reacting to the ups and downs with the dollar, yes, that's where the challenge is, and we will be attending to it," Sitharaman added.
The Finance Minister said the latest measures by the RBI supported the rupee as its value surged one per cent on Monday.
The apex bank on Saturday announced several measures aimed at reducing immediate dollar demand and curbing excessive positions in the foreign exchange market.
The RBI created a special window for oil marketing companies, which will take the dollar demand away from the spot market and tightened rules governing forex derivatives trades to curb speculative bets against the rupee.
In addition, it asked banks to create a 20 per cent reserve for dollar purchases of over USD 2 million.
Following the measures, the rupee appreciated 93 paise, logging its steepest single-day gain in more than six months on Monday, to close at 95.78 against the US dollar, according to PTI. On Tuesday, it appreciated 82 paise to 94.96 against US dollar in early trade.
Last week after the monetary policy announcement, RBI Governor Sanjay Malhotra had said that the regulator will ensure the rupee stabilises and will support it in reaching its correct value, when the currency was inching towards its all-time low of 96.96 against the dollar, during intraday trading.
"We will ensure that the rupee stabilises, that the rupee finds its correct value, and we will support an orderly movement of the rupee in finding its correct value and at the same time in ensuring that there is no excessive volatility," he had said.
The rupee has been under pressure since the beginning of the West Asia conflict in late February. The elevated crude oil prices pose a challenge to an oil-importing country like India. India is the third largest importer and consumer of crude oil.
"By a number of estimates, including the REER (Real Effective Exchange Rate), the rupee is not overvalued; it may be undervalued," Malhotra had said.
(With inputs from PTI)
