NEW DELHI: Former prime minister Manmohan Singh Monday termed RBI Governor Urjit Patel's resignation as "very unfortunate" and said it was a "severe blow" to the country's economy.

Patel, who had a run-in with the government over the autonomy of the central bank, resigned from his job earlier on Monday, citing personal reasons.

His resignation came four days ahead of a crucial meeting of the board of the central bank that could have discussed issues of simmering differences with the government.

In a statement, Singh said he hoped that the RBI Governor's sudden resignation is not a harbinger of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's attempts to "destroy" the institutional foundations of India's USD 3 trillion economies.