Indian shares have risen in the afternoon trade on Thursday after an upgrade from by Goldman Sachs and the decision by the Indian government to put to vote the issue of FDI in multi brand retail in the country.

The benchmark Sensex index of the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) has risen 1.24 percent to 19,074.40 and the Nifty index of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) increased 1.15 percent at 5,793.15. Both the key indices are expected to rise to its highest level in 19 months.

The shares increased after international financial institution, Goldman Sachs upgraded Indian stocks from 'market-weight' to 'overweight' due to indications of strong growth recovery and inflation moderation. The domestic sentiment was also boosted by government decision on Thursday to a vote on its decision to let global retail chains to set up stores in the country. The Parliament started functioning normally after days of opposition from the opposition parties.

Among the banks, HDFC rises 2.5 percent and ICICI Bank rises 2.2 percent. Real estate developers DLF and Unitech increased 1.9 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively. The BSE Sensex rose 255.45 points to 19,097.53 and the NSE Nifty increased 71.8 points to 5,799.25.