Mumbai: As stock market index is hurtling to approach the record 6,000 level, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) today (Jan 1, 2004) expressed concern over the "sharp" rise in the stock market activity and placed it under "close surveillance to detect any abnormal movements".

"We are watching market activity closely as it seems to have grown too fast," SEBI chairman G N Bajpai told reporters tonight (Jan1).

The market regulator has put in place monitoring mechanism to detect any violations by market participants and would take strong action against those found guilty for breach of regulations, Bajpai said.

Cautioning retail investors to be watchful on the shifts in the market, SEBI chief said, "They should take informed decision by studying developments and risks and rewards associated with the investments."

Hectic buying by foreign funds helped share prices to herald the New Year with sharp gains at the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) today, sending the Sensex to close above the 5900-mark at 5915.47, up by a whopping 76.51 points, just near to the all-time closing high of 5933.56 registered on February 11, 2000.