The RBI said it purchased $6.91 billion and sold $6.16 billion. In February, the central bank had bought $254 million on a net basis in the spot market.

The Indian rupee appreciated by 0.6% against the dollar in March. The unit traded in a range of 81.6150 to 82.80.         The RBI's net outstanding forward purchase stood at $23.6 billion as of end-March, compared with a net purchase of $20.47 billion at the end of the previous month, data released on Monday showed.

The central bank intervenes in the spot and forwards market to curb exchange rate volatility. The currency was at 82.8275 to the dollar on Monday.

(Reporting by Siddhi Nayak; Editing by Sohini Goswami)