New Delhi, Feb 14 (IANS): India's key benchmark equity indices -- S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50 -- declined sharply in early trade on Monday evidently due to heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine.

"Sentiments have turned very negative for the short-term with the heightened tension over the Ukraine crisis. Weakness in global markets is the direct fallout of the Ukraine crisis. Crude at an eight year high is another major macro concern for India," said V.K. Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

"If crude remains at levels of $95 a barrel for an extended period of time, the RBI will be forced to revise upwards its 4.5 per cent CPI inflation projection for FY23. Continuation of the accommodative monetary stance too will be difficult. While all these are negatives, diffusion of the Ukraine crisis can trigger a sharp rebound in markets led by large-cap blue chips."

At 10.06 a.m., Sensex traded at 57,037 points, down 1.9 per cent or 1,115 points from the previous close, Nifty traded at 17,034 points, down 2.0 per cent or 341 points from the previous close.

Among stocks, JSW Steel, HDFC Life, HDFC, Tata Steel, and SBI were the top five losers in the early trade, declining 5.0 per cent, 3.7 per cent, 3.7 per cent, 3.6 per cent, and 3.3 per cent, respectively, NSE data showed.

On the other hand, TCS and ONGC were the top gainers among the Nifty 50 stocks.