Reserve Bank Governor Shaktikanta Das on Wednesday called on Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, ahead of the central bank's interest rate-setting panel meeting next month. The minister separately held a meeting with Sebi Chairperson Madhabi Puri Buch at her North Block office, according to a post by Sitharaman's Office on X. These meetings come at a time when the industry is pitching for an interest rate cut, and stock markets are witnessing intense volatility. The RBI has held the benchmark interest rate or repo rate at an elevated level of 6.5 per cent since February 2023. Das-headed Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) is scheduled to meet from April 3-5, the first for the 2024-25 fiscal, in which it is expected to spell out inflation and growth trajectory for the financial year beginning April 1. The RBI, in its policy review last month, projected a GDP growth rate of 7 per cent and average inflation of 4.5 per cent for 2024-25. The Indian economy is estimated to have grown over Read The Rest at :