Mumbai, Sept. 21 -- The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should avoid raising interest rates in its upcoming Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) review as higher borrowing costs during the festive season could hurt consumer spending and corporate borrowing, Debopam Chaudhuri, Chief Economist at Piramal Group, said.

Speaking exclusively to ANI News in Mumbai on Monday, Chaudhuri said a rate hike at this stage could increase the burden of equated monthly instalments (EMIs) for consumers and weaken discretionary spending during an important period for demand.

"In the middle of the festive period, if EMI burdens increase for consumers, demand for discretionary spending... might slow down," he stated. "I hope there is no interest rate hike in this me...