Government appoints Shaktikanta Das as the new RBI governor

Former finance secretary and current member of the finance commission Shaktikanta Das is the new Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor.

CNBC-TV18 reported on Tuesday that Das is the main contender for the job.

Before this, Das was appointed as India's sherpa at the recent two-day annual G20 meeting held at Buenos Aires. A former civil servant, Das is also a member of the 15th Finance Commission.

The announcement came a day after Urjit Patel resigned from his post of RBI governor on account of personal reasons, with immediate effect.

"On account of personal reasons, I have decided to step down from my current position effective immediately," Patel said in a statement.

The 54-year old Indian economist had served as the deputy governor for three years before his appointment as the governor on September 4, 2016.

"It has been my privilege and honour to serve in the Reserve Bank of India in various capacities over the years. The support and hard work of RBI staff, officers and management has been the proximate driver of the Bank’s considerable accomplishments in recent years. I take this opportunity to express gratitude to my colleagues and Directors of the RBI Central Board, and wish them all the best for the future, " he added.

Das, 61, is former finance secretary and currently a member of the federal finance commission, and one of India's serving G20 representatives. He was widely perceived to be a contender for the top job at the RBI after the exit of former governor Raghuram Rajan in 2016.

He previously served on the central bank's board. Das came under fire for his pro-demonetisation stance and he was the most visible and vocal bureaucrat at the time Modi withdrew the high-value bank notes in 2016.

Last year, Das criticised the methodology of global rating agencies and sought a sovereign rating upgrade. Das has worked extensively in the budget division under both Modi's government and the previous coalition led by the Congress.