Current-law overview: The Reserve Bank of India Act, 1934 (Act No. 2 of 1934) constitutes the Reserve Bank of India and provides the statutory framework for currency management, central banking functions, regulation of specified non-banking financial institutions and monetary policy. The present Act includes Chapter IIIF on monetary policy and the Monetary Policy Committee, as well as later NBFC supervisory and resolution provisions.
Legal references reviewed against official sources on 4 September 2026.
The Act's modern monetary-policy framework states that the primary objective of monetary policy is to maintain price stability while keeping in mind the objective of growth. Under Chapter IIIF, the Central Government determines the inflation target in consultation with the RBI, and the Monetary Policy Committee determines the policy rate required to achieve that target.
Section-wise Index
Internal section links from the existing AapTaxLaw RBI Act collection are retained where available. Newly inserted or later-added provisions are listed even where a separate internal page was not present in the uploaded file.
Chapter I - Preliminary
- Section 1 - Short title, extent and commencement
- Section 2 - Definitions
Chapter II - Incorporation, Capital, Management and Business
- Section 3 - Establishment and incorporation of Reserve Bank
- Section 4 - Capital of the Bank
- Section 5 - Increase and reduction of share capital
- Section 6 - Offices, branches and agencies
- Section 7 - Management
- Section 8 - Composition of the Central Board and term of office of Directors
- Section 9 - Local Boards, their constitution and functions
- Section 10 - Disqualifications of Directors and members of Local Boards
- Section 11 - Removal from and vacation of office
- Section 12 - Casual vacancies and absences
- Section 13 - Meetings of the Central Board
- Section 17 - Business which the Bank may transact
- Section 18 - Power of direct discount
- Section 18A - Validity of loan or advance not to be questioned
- Section 19 - Business which the Bank may not transact
Chapter III - Central Banking Functions
- Section 20 - Obligation of the Bank to transact Government business
- Section 21 - Bank to have the right to transact Government business in India
- Section 21A - Bank to transact Government business of States on agreement
- Section 21B - Effect of certain pre-1956 agreements
- Section 22 - Right to issue bank notes
- Section 23 - Issue Department
- Section 24 - Denominations of notes
- Section 25 - Form of bank notes
- Section 26 - Legal tender character of notes
- Section 26A - Certain bank notes to cease to be legal tender
- Section 27 - Re-issue of notes
- Section 28 - Recovery of notes lost, stolen, mutilated or imperfect
- Section 28A - Issue of special bank notes and special one-rupee notes in certain cases
- Section 29 - Bank exempt from stamp duty on bank notes
- Section 30 - Powers of Central Government to supersede Central Board
- Section 31 - Issue of demand bills and notes
- Section 32 - Penalty
- Section 33 - Assets of the Issue Department
- Section 34 - Liabilities of the Issue Department
- Section 35 - Initial assets and liabilities
- Section 36 - Method of dealing with fluctuations in rupee coin assets
- Section 37 - Suspension of asset requirements as to foreign securities
- Section 38 - Obligations of Government and the Bank in respect of rupee coin
- Section 39 - Obligation to supply different forms of currency
- Section 40 - Transactions in foreign exchange
- Section 41 - Obligation to provide remittance between India and BurmaRepealed
- Section 42 - Cash reserves of scheduled banks to be kept with the Bank
- Section 43 - Publication of consolidated statement by the Bank
- Section 43A - Protection of action taken in good faith
- Section 44 - Power to require returns from co-operative banksOmitted
- Section 45 - Appointment of agents
Chapter IIIA - Collection and Furnishing of Credit Information
- Section 45A - Definitions
- Section 45B - Power of Bank to collect credit information
- Section 45C - Power to call for returns containing credit information
- Section 45D - Procedure for furnishing credit information to banking companies
- Section 45E - Disclosure of information prohibited
- Section 45F - Certain claims for compensation barred
- Section 45H - Chapter IIIB not to apply in certain cases
Chapter IIIB - Provisions Relating to Non-Banking Institutions Receiving Deposits and Financial Institutions
- Section 45I - Definitions
- Section 45IA - Requirement of registration and net owned fund
- Section 45IB - Maintenance of percentage of assets
- Section 45IC - Reserve fund
- Section 45ID - Power of Bank to remove directors from office
- Section 45IE - Supersession of Board of directors of NBFC other than Government Company
- Section 45J - Bank to regulate or prohibit issue of prospectus or advertisement soliciting deposits
- Section 45JA - Power of Bank to determine policy and issue directions
- Section 45K - Power to collect information from non-banking institutions as to deposits and to give directions
- Section 45L - Power to call for information from financial institutions and to give directions
- Section 45M - Duty of non-banking institutions to furnish statements, etc.
- Section 45MA - Powers and duties of auditors
- Section 45MAA - Powers to take action against auditors
- Section 45MB - Power of Bank to prohibit acceptance of deposit and alienation of assets
- Section 45MBA - Resolution of non-banking financial company
- Section 45MC - Power of Bank to file winding up petition
- Section 45N - Inspection
- Section 45NA - Deposits not to be solicited by unauthorised persons
- Section 45NAA - Power in respect of group companies
- Section 45NB - Disclosure of information
- Section 45NC - Power of Bank to exempt
- Section 45O - PenaltiesOmitted
- Section 45P - Cognizance of offenceOmitted
- Section 45Q - Chapter IIIB to override other laws
- Section 45QA - Power of Company Law Board to order/offer repayment of deposit
- Section 45QB - Nomination by depositors
Chapter IIIC - Prohibition of Acceptance of Deposits by Unincorporated Bodies
- Section 45R - Interpretation
- Section 45S - Deposits not to be accepted in certain cases
- Section 45T - Power to issue search warrants
Chapter IIID - Regulation of Transactions in Derivatives, Money Market Instruments, Securities, etc.
Chapter IIIE - Joint Mechanism
Chapter IIIF - Monetary Policy
- Section 45Z - Provisions of this Chapter to override other provisions of Act
- Section 45ZA - Inflation target
- Section 45ZB - Constitution of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZC - Eligibility and selection of Members appointed by Central Government
- Section 45ZD - Terms and conditions of appointment of Members of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZE - Removal of Members of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZF - Vacancies, etc., not to invalidate proceedings of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZG - Secretary to Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZH - Information for Monetary Policy Committee Members
- Section 45ZI - Meetings of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZJ - Steps to be taken to implement decision of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZK - Publication of decisions
- Section 45ZL - Publication of proceedings of meeting of Monetary Policy Committee
- Section 45ZM - Monetary Policy Report
- Section 45ZN - Failure to maintain inflation target
- Section 45ZO - Power to make rules
Chapter IV - General Provisions
- Section 46 - Contribution by Central Government to the Reserve Fund
- Section 46A - Contribution to National Rural Credit Funds
- Section 46C - National Industrial Credit (Long Term Operations) Fund
- Section 46D - National Housing Credit (Long-Term Operations) Fund
- Section 47 - Allocation of surplus profits
- Section 48 - Exemption of Bank from income-tax and super-tax
- Section 49 - Publication of Bank rate
- Section 50 - Auditors
- Section 51 - Appointment of special auditors by Government
- Section 52 - Powers and duties of auditors
- Section 53 - Returns
- Section 54 - Rural Credit and Development
- Section 54A - Delegation of powers
- Section 54AA - Power of Bank to depute its employees to other institutions
- Section 55 - Reports by the BankRepealed
- Section 56 - Declaration as to ownership of registered sharesOmitted
- Section 57 - Liquidation of the Bank
- Section 57A - Powers of Bank not to apply to International Financial Services Centre
- Section 58 - Power of the Central Board to make regulations
- Section 58A - Protection of action taken in good faith
- Section 58B - Penalties
- Section 58C - Offences by companies
- Section 58D - Application of section 58B barred
- Section 58E - Cognizance of offences
- Section 58F - Application of fine
- Section 58G - Power of Bank to impose fine
- Section 59 - Amendment of Act 3 of 1906Repealed
- Section 60 - RepealsRepealed
Schedules
- First Schedule
- Second Schedule
- Third Schedule
- Fourth Schedule
- Fifth Schedule
For the current text of all schedules and amendments, use the official India Code link in the right-side resources panel.
Important legal note
This page is a structured reference guide and index. For authoritative statutory text, amendments, notifications, rules and subordinate legislation, consult the official India Code and Reserve Bank of India resources linked in the sidebar. Where a provision is marked "Repealed" or "Omitted", it should not be treated as an operative provision merely because it appeared in an older compilation.