In these circumstances, the rate of macro-economic convergence has been much less than expected as several countries have found difficulty in meeting, in particular, the fiscal and external debt targets. The slippage has highlighted a marked difference in our approach towards a monetary union compared with that of the EU.
In the case of the EU the convergence criteria were taken as a basis for policy action, a disciplining device. Thus, for instance, if a country was not likely to meet the fiscal criterion, strict monitoring as well as peer pressure forced the country to take measures to come back on track.