Status quo: Das has promises to keep...

At the end of the three-day meeting of the central bank's rate-setting body, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC), Reserve Bank of India (RBI) Governor Shaktikanta Das once again announced his commitment to bottle the inflation genie first before any rate action.

The monetary policy, his statement says, must continue to be actively disinflationary to align inflation to the target of 4 percent on a durable basis.

The MPC also decided to remain focused on withdrawal of accommodation to ensure fuller transmission of the 250 basis points hike in the policy rate between May 2020 and February 2023, raising it from 4 percent to 6.5 percent to anchor inflation expectations.

While reading out his 39-minute statement on Thursday morning, Das had his first sip of water after half an hour.

The central theme of the monetary policy statement reminds one of American poet Robert Frost's Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening, which ends, saying: The woods are lovely, dark and deep, But I have promises to keep, And miles to go before Isleep, And miles to go before I sleep.

Like the lone wagon driver in the poem, Das won't sleep till he keeps his promise bringing down inflation to 4 percent.

Indeed, inflation has seen a significant moderation from the highs of the summer of 2022 after the monetary policy prioritised inflation over growth. However, the job is not yet finished and "we need to be vigilant about new supply shocks that may undo the progress made so far," his statement says.

So, for the sixth successive MPC meeting, the repo rate remains unchanged at 6.5 percent and, the stance, "withdrawal of accommodation".