Indian shares fell for a second straight session on Tuesday, dragged down by IT and banking stocks, as the spread of the Omicron coronavirus variant unnerved investors globally ahead of a bevy of key central bank meetings later this week. The blue-chip NSE Nifty 50 index (.NSEI) was down 0.61% at 17,255 by 0346 GMT, while the benchmark S&P BSE Sensex (.BSESN) fell 0.68% to 57,884.91. Fears over the Omicron variant grew after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned of a "tidal wave" of new cases, and the World Health Organization said it poses a "very high" global risk, with some evidence that it evades vaccine protection. read more The IT services index (.NIFTYIT) was down 0.86%, while the bank index (.NSEBANK) fell 0.7%. Meanwhile, India"s retail inflation accelerated in November, led by a rise in food prices, but remained within the medium-term target of the central bank, strengthening views that the bank could keep interest rates on hold at its next meeting in February. read more Reporting by Nallur Sethuraman in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.