MUMBAI: The Indian rupee fell on Thursday as local shares dipped and the euro retreated on doubts over whether the euro zone leaders would take strong steps at a meeting this weekend to ease the region's debt crisis. Traders said dollar demand from domestic oil companies, the biggest purchasers of the greenback in local currency market, increased the pain for the rupee. At 9:20 a.m., the partially convertible rupee was at 49.41/42 per dollar, weaker from Wednesday's close of 49.15/16 when it had gained 0.3 per cent. The euro was trading at $1.3721, compared with $1.3840 when the rupee closed on Wednesday. The index of the dollar against six major currencies was at 77.245 points, sharply above 76.705 points on Wednesday. Plans to tackle the euro zone debt crisis have stalled, with Paris and Berlin at odds over how to increase the firepower of the region's bailout fund, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said on Wednesday, heightening concerns about how much progress could be made at a summit of European leaders on Sunday. The local benchmark share index fell more than 1 per cent in early trade.

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