When India was liberalised in 1991-92 to invite foreign competition in lieu of the shackling licence raj, the country faced an economic crisis like no other. With dwindling foreign exchange reserves, the only option left for the Reserve Bank of India was to air lift 47 tonnes of gold to the Bank of England and 20 tonnes to the Union Bank of Switzerland. This enabled India to raise $600 million to keep itself afloat.

The rest is, as they say, history. 18 years later the central bank got back 200 tonnes of gold or three times as much as was pledged during the crisis. Since then India has made a mark for itself in the global economy and today is considered among the fastest growing big economies. Whether it be a financial crisis at an individual level or an economic one at a national scale, gold has chipped in handsomely to do its bit.