The Bank was constituted for the need of following: •To regulate the issue of banknotes
•To maintain reserves with a view to securing monetary stability and
•To operate the credit and currency system of the country to its advantage.
Role of RBI
Banker to Government
The second important function of the Reserve Bank of India is to act as Government banker, agent and adviser.
The Reserve Bank is agent of Central Government and of all State Governments in India excepting that of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Reserve Bank has the obligation to transact Government business, via. to keep the cash balances as deposits free of interest, to receive and to make payments on behalf of the Government and to carry out their exchange remittances and other banking operations. The Reserve Bank of India helps the Government - both the Union and the States to float new loans and to manage public debt. The Bank makes ways and means advances to the Governments for 90 days. It makes loans and advances to the States and local authorities. It acts as adviser to the Government on all monetary and banking matters.
Controller of Credit
The Reserve Bank of India is the controller of credit i.e. it has the power to influence the volume of credit created by banks in India. It can do so through changing the Bank rate or through open market operations. According to the Banking Regulation Act of 1949, the Reserve Bank of India can ask any particular bank or the whole banking system not to lend to particular groups or persons on the basis of certain types of securities. Since 1956, selective controls of credit are increasingly being used by the Reserve Bank.
The Reserve Bank of India is armed with many more powers to control the Indian money market. Every bank has to get a licence from the Reserve Bank of India to do banking