G sec market depth: reforms in trading, settlement and participation to strengthen monetary transmission and debt management.
The address emphasises the G-sec market as the benchmark risk-free interest rate and a critical platform for monetary policy, liquidity management and public debt management. It summarises legal and infrastructure reforms-electronic trading, anonymous central order book, delivery versus payment settlement and central clearing-that enhanced transparency and reduced settlement risk. Remaining challenges include concentrated liquidity, low turnover in several tenors, limited derivative participation and a buy and hold investor base; proposed remedies include investor base expansion, securities lending and new hedging instruments.

Government receipts and expenditures: consolidated monthly fiscal position showing composition of receipts and major revenue and capital outlays.
Consolidated monthly accounts show the Union Government's receipts composed of net tax revenue, non tax revenue and non debt capital receipts (loan recoveries and disinvestment), together with a recorded transfer to States as Devolution of Share of Taxes; total expenditure is classified into Revenue Expenditure-notably interest payments and major subsidies-and Capital Expenditure, with proportions of budget estimates reported for receipts and outlays.

Issue price of Sovereign Gold Bonds tied to IBJA average; online digital applicants receive a per gram discount.
The bond's nominal value per gram is set by the simple average closing price for 999 purity gold published by IBJA for the three business days preceding the subscription period (August 25-27, 2021). Investors who apply online and make payment through digital modes receive a per gram discount from that nominal value, resulting in a lower issue price for eligible digital applicants.

Government securities auction: re-issue offered with mixed pricing methods and reserved non-competitive allocation.
The Government announced re-issue auctions of three Government securities using uniform price and multiple price methods, including a Government option to retain additional subscription and an allocation of up to five percent for eligible bidders under the Non-Competitive Bidding Facility. Competitive and non-competitive bids must be submitted electronically on the Reserve Bank of India's E-Kuber platform within prescribed windows on the auction day; results and payment occur on specified dates. The securities are eligible for When Issued trading in accordance with the Reserve Bank's guidelines.

Monetary policy determined domestically, focusing on calibrated liquidity normalisation and orderly yield curve evolution for stability.
Monetary policy is determined primarily by domestic macroeconomic considerations and must be calibrated and timed carefully to nurture a fragile economic revival while preserving financial stability. The RBI is moving toward normalising liquidity operations-increasing fortnightly VRRR absorption while retaining substantial surplus liquidity-and continues to deploy instruments such as G SAP, TLTROs, OMOs and operation twist to ensure orderly yield curve evolution and effective monetary transmission. The reverse repo rate remains an RBI liquidity tool distinct from the MPC's remit. The RBI cautions against using forex reserves for fiscal purposes and flags private cryptocurrencies as financial stability concerns while advising strict KYC for banks.

Public sector bank digital reform advances with EASE 4.0 to embed data and deepen customer centric digital banking services.
EASE 4.0 is introduced as a tech enabled, simplified, collaborative reforms agenda to embed digital and data capabilities across Public Sector Banks. It follows EASE 3.0, under which PSBs returned to aggregate profitability, reduced gross NPAs, advanced digital lending (including Credit@click and 24x7 digital loan channels), deployed analytics teams for proactive credit offers, increased digital transaction share and multilingual services, and recorded significant improvement on the EASE index between March 2020 and March 2021.

Government securities auction rules set bidding methods, non-competitive allocation and eligibility for when issued trading.
Government of India announced auctions for several central government securities using price-based and spread-based auction methods (uniform price or multiple price as specified), with an option to accept additional subscriptions. Up to five percent of each notified amount is reserved for eligible individuals and institutions under the Non-Competitive Bidding Facility. Bids must be submitted electronically on the E Kuber platform within specified competitive and non-competitive windows; results and settlement follow the announced schedule. The securities are eligible for When Issued trading under RBI guidelines.

Government securities re-issue auction: uniform and multiple price methods with non-competitive allocation and when issued trading eligibility.
Re-issue auctions are announced for three central Government securities using uniform price and multiple price methods; the issuer may retain additional subscriptions up to a cap and up to five percent of each notified issue is reserved for eligible individuals and institutions under the non-competitive bidding facility. Competitive and non-competitive bids must be submitted electronically via the authorised core banking system within prescribed time windows; auction results and payment dates are pre-set. The securities are eligible for "When Issued" trading under the central bank's applicable guidelines.

Overseas investment regulations draft seeks stakeholder comments to rationalise FEMA rules on non-debt instruments and property acquisitions.
Draft rules have been published to rationalise the regulatory framework for overseas investment and acquisition of immovable property outside India under the Foreign Exchange Management Act, including proposed Rules for non-debt instruments and proposed Regulations for overseas investment; both instruments are open for stakeholder comments prior to finalisation.

Government securities auction: re-issue with non-competitive quota, electronic bidding windows and payment schedule.
Re-issue auctions for four Government securities will be conducted using uniform price method for three securities and multiple price method for one; the Government may retain additional subscriptions up to a notified limit. Up to five percent of each notified amount is reserved for eligible individuals and institutions under the non-competitive bidding scheme. Both competitive and non-competitive bids must be submitted electronically via the central e-auction system within specified time windows on auction day. Auction results and payment follow on designated dates. The securities are eligible for When Issued trading under applicable guidelines.

Digital payment ecosystem expansion drives reduced cash dependence and increased electronic payment volumes nationwide.
Policy endorses transition to a less cash economy via a strengthened digital payment ecosystem, with digital payment volumes increasing from 1459.02 crore in FY 2017-18 to 4371.18 crore in FY 2020-21. Notes in Circulation were Rs. 17,74,187 crore on 4 November 2016 and Rs. 27,80,045 crore on 29 January 2021. The level of bank notes is stated to depend on GDP growth, inflation, replacement of soiled notes, and growth in non-cash payment modes.

Sovereign Gold Bond pricing: market-referenced issue price with a digital-payment discount for online applicants.
The bond's nominal value is fixed by reference to the simple average closing market price for high-purity gold over the three business days immediately preceding the subscription period. The Government, in consultation with monetary authorities, offers a fixed per-gram discount to applicants who apply online and pay by digital mode, producing a lower issue price for eligible digital online subscribers during the specified short subscription window.

Monetary policy stance maintained with accommodative measures continuing to support growth and liquidity amid pandemic uncertainty.
The Monetary Policy Committee kept the key policy rate unchanged and maintained an accommodative stance to sustain growth amid COVID-19, while retaining inflation and GDP projections, proposing additional G-SAP auctions to manage market conditions and announcing further liquidity measures; the RBI reported improved transmission of policy easing to lending rates and emphasized a series of measures deployed since the pandemic onset.

Digital voucher e-RUPI enables person specific prepaid contactless payments for targeted benefit delivery and service redemption.
e-RUPI is a person specific, purpose specific prepaid digital voucher delivered by SMS or QR code that enables one time, contactless, cashless redemption at designated service providers without requiring a bank account, card, payments app, or internet access, thereby supporting targeted Direct Benefit Transfer, enhancing transparency, assuring real time payments to providers, and reducing costs associated with physical vouchers.

Foreign direct investment records a new annual high, reflecting targeted investment promotion and strengthened manufacturing coordination.
India recorded a record provisional annual foreign direct investment inflow in 2020-21, following a multi-year upward trend since 2014-15; seven-year cumulative inflows represent a majority share of two-decade receipts. The Make in India initiative underpins policy to attract investment and develop manufacturing, with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade and the Department of Commerce coordinating sectoral actions. Programme-specific activity data and foreign company details are held across multiple central and state departments and not centrally consolidated; provisional figures are subject to RBI reconciliation.

Green Channel approval: acquisition of equity stake in PNB Housing Finance deemed approved under merger control procedure.
The Competition Commission of India received a notice for acquisition of an equity stake in PNB Housing Finance Limited by Pluto Investments S.a r.l. and Salisbury Investments Private Limited under the Green Channel, and such notice is deemed to be approved under regulation 5A of the Competition Commission of India (Procedure in regard to the transaction of business relating to combinations) Regulations, 2011.

Loan moratorium and relief measures: temporary repayment relief and targeted liquidity support to sustain farm credit during COVID-19.
Temporary measures included a moratorium on term and crop loans through 31st August 2020 with continuation of Interest Subvention and Prompt Repayment Incentive; moratorium was not extended thereafter. Loans for allied activities were permitted to be restructured under the Resolution Framework for COVID-19 Related Stress, allowing moratoriums and other relief. RBI's disaster relief directions enable automatic restructuring, fresh credit, relaxed security/margin norms and moratoria upon official calamity declaration, with a lowered relief trigger of 33% crop loss. NABARD provided an additional Special Liquidity Facility to rural lenders and NBFC MFIs to support post harvest and sowing credit at concessional rates.

Government securities auction re-issue announced; bids via E-Kuber with non-competitive allocation and when-issued trading allowed.
Announcement of a re-issue auction program for specified Central Government securities to be conducted by RBI, using uniform price method for two securities and multiple price method for one, with an option for the Government to accept additional subscriptions. Up to five percent of each notified amount is reserved under the Non-Competitive Bidding Facility. Competitive and non-competitive bids must be submitted electronically via E-Kuber within prescribed time windows; results and payment dates are specified. Securities will be eligible for When Issued trading per RBI guidelines.