Intra-day profit booking in noon deals saw the index pare gains and drop to a low of 16,697.
The index moved in a range of 388 points between 16,697 (low) and 17,086 (high) before finally settling (provisional) with a loss of 153 points at 16,708.
The NSE Nifty ended (provisional) with a loss of 66 points at 4,946.
The market breadth was neutral - out of 2,783 stocks traded, 1,371 advanced, 1,347 declined and 65 were unchanged today.