Iain Marlow And Anirban Nag Bloomberg

Mr Patel, who succeeded Raghuram Rajan in September 2016 for a three-year term, has been at loggerheads with the finance ministry on matters including the banking crisis and interest rates.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unveiled a budget that opens the taps for impoverished farmers, guaranteeing higher minimum crop prices and more spending on infrastructure projects in the country's vast rural hinterland.

After scoring a rare sovereign upgrade late last year, PM Modi wants to keep global investors and credit-rating companies on his side in the Budget 2018. Key to that will be sticking to his goal to narrow one of Asia's largest budget deficits.

Moody's Investors Service raising India's sovereign rating for the first time in 14 years is not only a vote of confidence for India's longer-term financial health at a time when the government's economic policies are facing criticism and growth has slipped to levels last seen in 2014, it has also offered a political victory to Prime Minister Naren...

Mr Patel, who succeeded Raghuram Rajan in September 2016 for a three-year term, has been at loggerheads with the finance ministry on matters including the banking crisis and interest rates.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unveiled a budget that opens the taps for impoverished farmers, guaranteeing higher minimum crop prices and more spending on infrastructure projects in the country's vast rural hinterland.

After scoring a rare sovereign upgrade late last year, PM Modi wants to keep global investors and credit-rating companies on his side in the Budget 2018. Key to that will be sticking to his goal to narrow one of Asia's largest budget deficits.

Moody's Investors Service raising India's sovereign rating for the first time in 14 years is not only a vote of confidence for India's longer-term financial health at a time when the government's economic policies are facing criticism and growth has slipped to levels last seen in 2014, it has also offered a political victory to Prime Minister Naren...