Equity benchmark Sensex crossed the 57,000-mark for the very first time, as it jumped over 200 points in early trade on Tuesday, tracking gains in index heavyweights Infosys, HDFC Bank and TCS amid fresh foreign fund inflows.

In tandem, the broader NSE Nifty was trading a tad below the crucial 17,000-mark.

After touching a lifetime high of 57,124.78 in the opening session, the 30-share index was trading 115.53 points or 0.20 per cent higher at 57,005.29. Similarly, the broader NSE Nifty advanced 24.15 points or 0.14 per cent to 16,955.20.

Bharti Airtel was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rising over 1 per cent, followed by HCL Tech, Tech Mahindra, TCS and Asian Paints.

On the other hand, M&M, IndusInd Bank, SBI and Reliance Industries were among the laggards.

In the previous session, the BSE index ended 765.04 points or 1.36 per cent higher to 56,889.76, and Nifty surged 225.85 points or 1.35 per cent to its record closing of 16,931.05.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) turned net buyers in the capital market as they purchased shares worth Rs 1,202.81 crore on Monday, as per provisional exchange data.

"A distinguishing feature of this bull market which started in April 2020, is that it has been remarkably stable without any major correction," V K Vijayakumar, Chief Investment Strategist at Geojit Financial Services.

So, the newbie retail investors who entered the market since April 2020 (1.42 crore new Demat accounts opened in FY21) have been buying every dip, successfully, he noted, adding that with the Fed giving a commentary favourable to bulls, momentum is likely to take the Nifty to 17,000.

Meanwhile, the Union Health Ministry has declared that the number of active Covid-19 cases in the country has declined to 3,70,640. A single-day rise of 30,941 new infections and 350 fatalities has push India's tally of cases to 3,27,68,880 and death toll to 4,38,560.

US equities extended gains mostly with S&P 500 and Nasdaq recording fresh highs.

In Asia, bourses in Shanghai and Hong Kong were trading with losses in mid-session deals, while Tokyo and Seoul were positive.