The NSE Nifty 50 index was up 0.28% at 15,843.65, as of 0400 GMT, and the S&P BSE Sensex advanced 0.33% to 53,201.1. The rupee stepped back from record lows hit in the previous session and was trading at 78.93 per the dollar.

Still, the Nifty and the Sensex were set for their worst quarter since the early days of the pandemic in 2020, with losses of around 9% each, pulled down by concerns over aggressive rate hikes and inflation.

Reliance Industries, India's most valuable company, provided the biggest boost to the blue-chip indexes with a 1.4% jump.

(Reporting by Chris Thomas in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)