MUMBAI : Mint Street veterans claim that the tea served at the central bank has magical properties; it can convert even the fiercest critics into fans for life.
This mythical story counts current Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor, Shaktikanta Das, among those transformed. When Das took the lift to RBI’s 18th floor, on 12 December 2018, to take over as governor, the central bank had already been through plenty of turmoil and turbulence, with public spats and bickering occupying headlines.
Das was expected to provide calm, reach out to key financial system stakeholders, hold the wheel and steady the keel. Expectations from him were simple: steer the central bank back to the straight and narrow and don’t protest about the finance ministry.