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Don’t write me off, I’ll be around: Raghuram Rajan on his ‘obituaries’

Taking a dig at those writing his “obituaries”, Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan said on Wednesday he will be around “a lot in India” even after leaving the central bank and should not be written off as yet.

Updated on: Jun 22, 2016, 21:30:50 IST
By , Bengaluru
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Taking a dig at those writing his “obituaries”, Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan said on Wednesday he will be around “a lot in India” even after leaving the central bank and should not be written off as yet.

Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan greets the audience during an interactive session at the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India in Bangalore on Wednesday. (AP Photo)
Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan greets the audience during an interactive session at the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India in Bangalore on Wednesday. (AP Photo)

The comments come within days of Rajan making public his ‘no’ to a second term at the RBI after his current three- year tenure ends on September 4.

Read: He is Raghuram Rajan: Here is what he did for India

“I feel like in the last few days I have read a lot of my obituaries and I’m still here. I’m still here for two-and-half months in this job. After that I’m going to still be around somewhere in the world, probably a lot in India, so don’t write me off,” Rajan Said.

During the question-and-answer session, he further said: “The only thing I will say is that... I read these obituaries in the papers, I am still alive. I will leave this office in September, but I certainly will be coming in and out of the country on numerous occasions.”

Read: Rajan bats for moderate inflation, warns against ‘dramatic’ rate cuts

“I will be reading and writing and I will be speaking at fora like this,” said Rajan, who has been hailed as a ‘rockstar’ central banker for containing inflation and checking rupee volatility despite global headwinds.

Rajan, the former chief economist at the IMF who is credited for predicting the 2008 global financial crisis, made this observation at the start of his speech at an interactive industry meet organised by business chamber Assocham.

Read: Was Rajan offered a ‘second term’ in the first place: Subramanian Swamy

Amid political attacks and criticism from some quarters for not lowering interest rates enough to boost economy, Rajan had on Saturday announced that he would return to academics after his term ends, putting at rest all speculation over his continuance.

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