I last spoke on the economic outlook in October, and my views since then remain largely unchanged – though, I should hasten to add, not because I am too lazy to update my forecast! Rather, the data since last fall have been broadly in line with my earlier expectations and suggest that a moderate recovery is under way, accompanied by low inflation.
There were also some relevant observations by the Advisory Group on Banking Supervision under the chairmanship, Shri M.S. Verma which submitted its report in January 2003. Keeping all these recommendations in view and the cross-country experience, the Reserve Bank initiated several measures to strengthen the corporate governance in the Indian banking sector.