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Sun, 06 May 2018

Despite data breach, poll suggests Facebook's US loyalty intact

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21:07 Despite data breach, poll suggests Facebook's US loyalty intact

Most Facebook users in the United States remain loyal, despite the recent data sharing scandal involving a political consultancy firm, a poll suggests.

Facebook admitted last month that the data of 87 million users had been improperly shared with the UK-based firm, Cambridge Analytica.

The Reuters/Ipsos survey found no clear loss or gain in use since then.

A quarter of Facebook users said they used it less or had left it but another quarter said they used it even more.

The remaining half said their use of the network had not changed.

However, the survey was limited to the US and analysts are waiting to see how the social media giant's sales perform in the second quarter, when the scandal was at its height.

Some 64 per cent said they used Facebook at least once a day, down slightly from the 68 per cent recorded in a similar poll in late March, soon after the Cambridge Analytica story broke.

Asked if they were aware of their current privacy settings, 74 per cent of Facebook users said they were, and 78 per cent said they knew how to change them. Among Twitter users, this was 55 per cent and 58 per cent, while for Instagram users, it was 60 per cent and 65 per cent.

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny was released from police custody early Sunday, a day after hundreds of people were detained following an anti-government protest in Moscow.

Navalny, a fierce critic of President Vladimir Putin, organised the rallies in several cities across Russia on Saturday. He was detained by police shortly after arriving in Moscow's Pushkinskaya Square, with dramatic images showing the protest leader being carried through the crowds by police.

Navalny said in a tweet that he was released shortly after midnight on Sunday, after police "registered two protocols against me: organization of a rally and resistance of the police."

A man in Karnataka's Raichur has tattooed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's face on his back to show his support to the prime minister and the Bharatiya Janata Party during the ongoing election campaigning in the district.

The elated man, Basvaraj, said he got the tattoo done as a sign of appreciation for the work done by the PM in a period of four years.

"It took 15 hours to get this done. I got it made as our PM has done good work in a span of four years," said Basvaraj, who is a private tutor by profession.

In a BJP rally organised in the district, Prime Minister Modi called out his name and encouraged him to help the party win in the upcoming elections.

"He mentioned me in his rally today and said I should help BJP win elections in the state. I will never forget this day," Basvaraj added.

-- ANI

The Supreme Court is likely to hear tomorrow the Kathua gangrape-and-murder case along with the petitions seeking shifting of the trial to Chandigarh and handing over the investigation to the CBI.

A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, which had stayed the trial in the case till tomorrow, would deal with the prayer of the victim's father for shifting the trial to Chandigarh and the plea of the accused seeking handing over the probe to CBI.

The victim, an eight-year-old girl from a minority nomadic community, had disappeared from near her home in a village near Kathua in the Jammu region on January 10. Her body was found in the same area a week later.

The apex court had earlier given a stern warning and said it would transfer the Kathua gangrape-and-murder case from the local court in the "slightest possibility" of lack of fair trial, saying the "real concern" was to hold proper prosecution.

The girl's father had moved the apex court earlier, apprehending threat to the family, a friend and their lawyer Deepika Singh Rajawat. A separate plea was also filed by two accused seeking that the trial in the case be held in Jammu and the probe handed over to the CBI.

The state police's Crime Branch, which probed the case, filed the main chargesheet against seven persons and a separate chargesheet against a juvenile in a court in Kathua district last week. The chargesheet revealed chilling details about how the girl was allegedly kidnapped, drugged and raped inside a place of worship before being killed.

-- PTI

19:36

JUST IN: Pakistan interior minister Ahsan Iqbal injured after being shot during rally

19:26 Salman Khan in Jodhpur for hearing in blackbuck poaching case

Bollywood star Salman Khan today is in Jaipur for the hearing of his application before a sessions judge challenging the trial court order sentencing him to a five-year jail term in the 1998 blackbuck poaching case.

The application is listed for hearing tomorrow before Jodhpur District and Sessions Judge Chandra Kumar Songara, the actor's counsel Nishant Bora said.

Fifty-two-year-old Khan reached Jodhpur this afternoon from Mumbai by a regular

flight, a police official said.

He is accompanied by his sister Alvira, bodyguard Shera and some others, he said.

Khan was driven from driven straight from the airport to a five-star hotel, the official

said.

The actor will be present in the court during the hearing of his appeal, his counsel said.

Khan was released from the Jodhpur jail, where he spent two nights, on April 7 after then District and Sessions Judge Ravindra Kumar Joshi here granted him bail in the case.

-- PTI

While the BJP continued to launch its tirade against the Congress ahead of next weeks Karnataka Assembly elections, the latter decided to shift its focus to one of BJP ministers whose imagination is running riot. On the occasion of World Laughter Day, the Congress on Sunday took potshots at Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb over his string of controversial remarks made in recent past.

Taking to Twitter, the party uploaded a 150-second-video to present the next big BJP wave after Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The video also carried a disclaimer which said, The views, information or opinion expressed are solely of Biplab Kumar Deb and the BJP and do not even remotely represent reality."

Despite Modi warning his ministers to steer clear of controversies and not offer masala to the media by making irresponsible statements, Deb continued to make bizarre remarks. The newly-elected CM first made headlines when he said that the internet was invented lakhs of years ago and that the technology and satellites were present during the period of Mahabharata. A day later, he claimed that the international beauty pageants were a farce and questioned the rationale behind crowning Diana Hayden Miss World 21 years ago.

Just two days later, he went on to say that civil engineers are better suited to serve in civil services instead of mechanical engineers. He then suggested youth to not run behind politicians seeking government jobs, and instead become self-sufficient by starting their own business under the Prime Ministers Mudra scheme.

With the Lok Sabha elections scheduled to take place next year, Bharatiya Janata Party MLA from Ballia Surendra Singh equated Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the leader of the Pandavas in the political 'dharamyuddh'.

Singh said that Prime Minister Modi would play the leader of the Pandavas, while a tussle would take place to decide the leader of the Kauravas or the Opposition.

"The 2019 elections is like a political dharamyuddh, similar to the battle that took place in the Mahabharata. Modiji will lead for the Pandavas, as Lord Krishna or Arjun. However, the leader of the Kauravas could be Rahul (Gandhi), Mayawati, Lalu (Prasad) or Mayawati. I'm sure there will be an argument about this as well, as they have no leader," he said.

Ahead of the elections in Karnataka and other states, Singh claimed that those who fight for rights of people are with Prime Minister Modi, while the Opposition comprises of corrupt political leaders.

"The face of politics has now changed. All those who are honest and work for the welfare of people have sided with Modiji, while the corrupt leaders have united. People like Modiji and Yogi Adityanath have always worked for the betterment of people, and have no personal gains."

Singh further snubbed the Opposition for allegedly indulging in family politics, and expressed confidence in the BJP's victory in the 2019 general elections under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi.

-- ANI

18:15 Isha Ambani to wed Anand Piramal in December

Mukesh Ambani's daughter Isha will wed Ajay Piramal's son Anand in December, sources said.

Isha is the twin sister of Akash who was recently engaged to Shloka Mehta, daughter of diamantaire Russel Mehta. Their wedding too is planned for December.

Piramal group did not respond to email sent for comments.

Anand and Isha have been friends for long and their families have shared a strong friendship for over four decades, the sources said.

Anand is the founder of Piramal Realty. Prior to that he had founded Piramal Swasthaya, a rural healthcare initiative.

He is also an executive director of the Piramal group, a global business conglomerate.

Isha, on the other hand, is on the boards of Reliance Jio and Reliance Retail.

The sources said that Anand proposed to Isha at a temple in Mahabaleshwar.

People aware of the development said the couple celebrated the occasion at a lunch with their parents Nita, Mukesh, Swati and Ajay.

Isha's grand parents, Kokilaben Ambani and Purnimaben Dalal and bothers Akash and Anant were also present.

Just providing jobs and ensuring development is not the solution that will end "violence and alienation" in Kashmir, former chief minister Omar Abdullah said today referring to the killing in an encounter of an assistant professor who allegedly had joined terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen.

Sadly this is also an answer to those who claim jobs & development are the solution to the violence & alienation in Kashmir. This is another tragic development in a steady stream of tragedies in Kashmir, Abdullah tweeted.

Earlier, Mohammad Rafi Bhat, a contractual assistant professor in the sociology department of Kashmir University, was killed in a gunfight in Shopian district of Jammu and Kashmir today.

He was among the five terrorists belonging to outlawed Hizbul Mujahideen who were gunned down at Badigam village, police said.

The assistant professor was a 'fresh recruit' of the terror outfit, according to reports.

Members of the Gujjar community in Rajasthan today decided to revive their agitation from May 15 to press for their demand of five per cent reservation from within OBC quota.

The spokesperson of Gujjar Sangharsh Samiti, Himmat Singh, said that the decision was taken at a meeting in Bayana of Bharatpur district.

"The decision to revive the agitation was taken today in the meeting headed by Kirori Singh Bainsla. All the leaders of the community along with its members have been asked to assemble for a sit-in at Pilu ka pura on May 15 to demand reservation," he said.

Singh said that Gujjars are getting one per cent reservation under Most Backward Classes and the demand is for bifurcation of OBC quota to provide five per cent reservation to Gujjars and other communities.

The Rajasthan assembly had in October last year passed a bill to raise OBC reservation from 21 to 26 per cent to provide five per cent quota to Gujjar and other castes.

However, the high court stayed the bill as it would have increased the reservation to 54 per cent.

Wading into the Jinnah row, Union minister V K Singh today said those Muslims, who supported the presence of Pakistan founder's portrait in the Aligarh Muslim University, were insulting their forefathers, who had rejected his ideology.

They are Indians today because of their forefathers, the minister of state for external affairs said in a social media post.

A controversy has erupted over the presence of Muhammad Ali Jinnah's portrait in the AMU, with BJP leaders demanding that it be removed. A picture of the man responsible for India's division cannot be accepted in a public-funded institution, they have said.

Singh said, "If you are not a Muslim but support the portrait's presence because you think that protests against it curbs your freedom, then you should think if you would like on the walls of your house a picture of somebody whose hands are stained with the blood of your own people"

Without a doubt, freedom is everybody's right. But we tend to forget that how many great people shed their blood in achieving it. Will they be proud today of the manner in which you are using your freedom? the former Army chief asked in the post titled 'Let us protect our freedom from abuse'.

The minister said, If you are a Muslim and want Jinnah's portrait on your walls, then this is a huge insult of your forefathers who had rejected his ideology. You are an Indian today because of them.

Apparently addressing AMU students, he said it is one of the leading universities in the country and they (the students) should be aware of the expectations the country has from them.

Violence broke out on the AMU campus on Wednesday as the row over the portrait triggered a right-wing protest.

-- PTI

ahul Gandhi's Twitter outreach has played a key role in changing perceptions about him, senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has said urging the party chief to maintain his "unique communication" with the people and to ignore "trolls and troglodytes".

Tharoor, who was recently edged out by Gandhi as the most-followed Congress leader on Twitter, also said social media could prove to be a "game influencer" in 2019.

he said the Congress's counter-narrative to the BJP on social media was "witty, eye-catching and trendsetting".

"Even the BJP would do well to now try and take a leaf or two" out of the Congress's book, the former Union minister said, while also stressing his party did not seek to define itself on social media in metrics comparable to the BJP.

Asked if the microblogging site played a key role in helping people get to know the Congress president and changing his image from a reluctant politician to a dedicated leader, the MP from Thiruvananthapuram said, "Yes, very much so."

-- PTI

The superhero mashup movie Avengers: Infinity War has minted over $1 billion worldwide, setting the record for the fastest film to reach the milestone.

The film, which released on April 27, went past $1 billion mark on Saturday, reports Variety.

'Avengers: Infinity War' brings together 22 superheroes to fight one supervillain Thanos. Anthony and Joe Russo have brought the story alive on the big screen with actors like Robert Downey Jr, Mark Ruffalo, Benedict Cumberbatch and Scarlett Johansson.

The film also features Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Chadwick Boseman and Tom Holland.

The superhero tentpole opened to $257.6 million last weekend, attaining the highest-grossing opening weekend of all time.

The film is receiving a splendid response in India too. It got a flying start by recording a gross box office collection of Rs 120.9 crore in its opening weekend.

-- ANI

15:36

JUST IN: Six Indians abducted in Afghanistan's Baghlan, reports TOLO News

15:23 Pakistani army seeks better ties with India

The Pakistani military leadership led by Army Chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa is reaching out to India because it has realised that the way to peace and prosperity is through military cooperation with New Delhi, a Pakistani analyst has said in a British think-tank commentary.

The powerful army, which enjoys considerable influence over policy decisions in Pakistan, has ruled the country for much of its life since it gained independence 70 years ago.

"In a historic first last month, Pakistan's Army Chief of Staff Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa invited Sanjay Vishwasrao, the Indian military attache, and his team to the Pakistan Day military parade in Islamabad," wrote Kamal Alam, a visiting fellow at the UK-based Royal Unites Services Institute.

In a sign that strain ties between the two neighbour are warming up Gen Bajwa followed this two weeks later by saying that the Pakistan military wanted peace and dialogue with India, Alam said in his report released last week.

The two countries will also take part in joint military drills in Russia in September, with Chinese participation.

"These initiatives come against a background of almost weekly exchanges of fire along the Line of Control... However, they mark a change in attitudes that started when Bajwa became COAS in November 2016," the report said.

During a visit to the UK last year, Gen Bajwa addressed a gathering at RUSI and announced that the "Pakistan army is now no more insecure and feels confident of its future and that he welcomes Indian participation in Pakistan's flagship infrastructure project, the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor".

The report notes that both India and Pakistan have tried to forge relationships before as well. In the 1980s, Gen Zia-ul Haq, and then Indian prime minister Rajiv Gandhi became close.

Then, Pakistani military leader Gen Pervez Musharraf and prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee also came close at a 2002 summit in Agra to resolving the Kashmir conflict despite a year-long tense situation on the border.

--PTI

More than five women were raped every day in the national capital in the first three and a half months this year, according to the Delhi Police statistics.

The police claimed that in 96.63 per cent of the rape cases reported last year, the accused was known to the victim.

According to the data, 578 rape cases were reported to the police till April 15 this year as against 563 in 2017 during the same period.

The police attribute the rise in numbers to the speedy registration of cases.

However, the statistics showed a decline in the number of molestation cases reported this year.

In 2017, as many as 944 cases of assault on women were reported till April 15, while 883 cases were reported this year during the same period, according to the data.

In 2017, 2,049 rape cases were reported as opposed to 2,064 in 2016.

As many as 3,273 molestation cases were reported last year as compared to 4,035 in 2016, according to the statistics.

-- PTI

A year after a massive farmers' agitation roiled western Madhya Pradesh with six people getting killed in police firing in Mandsaur, the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government is bracing up for a fresh stir.

It could be all the more challenging for the BJP government to handle, as assembly elections are due this year.

A countrywide call for "Gram Bandh" (village shutdown) between June 1 and 10 is set to be centred on Mandsaur district of the state, the epicentre of last year's agitation.

Loan waiver and higher prices for farm produce are the main demands of agitators, represented by the Rashtriya Kisan Mahasangh, a federation of farmers' bodies.

June 6 will be observed as "Vishwas-ghat Diwas" (Day of Betrayal) in memory of the farmers who lost their lives in police firing in Mandsaur on this day last year.

-- PTI

Dalits need affirmative action and not token lunches with ministers, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah pointed out in a scathing tweet a week ahead of the bitterly fought assembly elections in the state. His target, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is campaigning in Chitradurga district, one with a substantial population of Dalits and tribals.

Siddaramaiah, whose tweets have taken a quantum jump in terms of sting and frequency, retweeted party chief Rahul Gandhi today with a comment of his own.

In Karnataka, Dalits influence the outcome in 63 of the state's 224 seats. The number has ensured a race for Dalit votes.

In his speech at Chitradurga today, PM Modi hit back, saying the Congress does not care about "dil" (people's hearts and feelings) or the Dalits. "They only care about deals," he said.

The BJP, which is trying to extend its Dalit outreach, has been in the news lately for its leaders' blunders on that score.

The Congress would emerge as the "number one party" in the Karnataka assembly elections, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut said today, taking a swipe at the BJP for mobilising the "entire central machinery" for state campaigns.

He also said the understanding between the BJP and his party for the upcoming Legislative Council polls in Maharashtra didn't mean the Sena would forge an alliance with it in the Lok Sabha and assembly elections in 2019.

"Whenever there are assembly polls, the entire central machinery and chief ministers of all BJP-ruled states go there (to campaign), leaving the administration of the country and of their own states in the lurch. The country is watching all this," Raut said, adding, ""Does the central leadership (of the BJP) not trust its own men in states? Why does Prime Minister Narendra Modi need to address dozens of campaign rallies when he is needed in Delhi to govern the country?"

Though an ally, the Sena has been continuously criticising the BJP and its governments in states and at the Centre.

-- PTI

The board of ICICI Bank, which will meet on Monday for approving the annual earnings of 2017-18, may see some discussion on the allegations of conflict of interest against the lenders CEO Chanda Kochhar, sources said.

There are series of allegations of impropriety in ICICI Bank extending loans to some companies and enjoying reciprocal benefits.

It is alleged that family members Kochhar, including her husband Deepak Kochhar, got financial favours from the borrowers against the loans sanctioned by the bank.

The issue is being investigated by multiple agencies including CBI, Income Tax Department.

Amid controversy of alleged conflict of interest involving ICICI Bank and its CEO, former Sebi chief M Damodaran has said one option is for her to step down for a period of three or four months till the investigation is completed.

The Press Council of India has rubbished the recently released Press Freedom Index, in which India slipped two places to rank 138th among 180 countries, saying there was a "lack of clarity" on the inputs that weighed in the rankings which were based on "opinion or perception".

Published annually by Reporters Without Borders, the World Press Freedom Index measures the level of media freedom in 180 countries.

The parameters that are evaluated include the level of pluralism, media independence, environment and self-censorship, legal framework, transparency, and the quality of the infrastructure that supports the production of news and information.

According to the RWB's annual report released on April 25, India dropped down two places -- from 136 last year to 138.

"We reject the rankings by the RWB. I am of the opinion that undue importance is given to the rankings. There is no clarity on the inputs that weighed in the ranking of a country," PCI Chairman Justice (retd) C K Prasad said.

The RWB report blamed physical violence against journalists like Gauri Lankesh, who was shot dead outside her house in Bengaluru in September 2017, as the key reason behind India's low ranking.

The report warned that hate crime was another issue plaguing India.

Prasad said the PCI had written to the RWB a number of times since 2015 to understand how the index was prepared, but hadn't received any reply.

He said the rankings were "reportedly" based partly on a questionnaire sent to the partner organisation of the RWF, its correspondents around the world, and journalists, researchers, jurists and human right activists.

Prasad said the PCI had earlier communicated to the RWB that the rankings were not based on statistical data, but "based on opinion or perception of an individual or group of individuals".

In a letter, dated September 22, 2015, to the RWB, the PCI had said that after going through the Word Press Index 2014, it was noticed that the rankings were prepared on the basis of various parameters, including media pluralism and independence, safety and freedom of journalists, legislative institutional and infrastructural environment in which media operates.

India ranked 140 in 2014.

"In order to understand the gravity of the matter, the chairman of the Council desires to know the inputs which weighed in ranking of the country in the index so that remedial steps, if needed, can be taken to smoothen the functioning of the media," the letter said.

"The chairman is further of the opinion that a structured discussion on the issue with your representative and the members of the Council would be helpful in achieving the objective," it read.

Letters were also sent to the RWB in October and December in 2015, seeking their response to the PCI's queries.

The PCI again wrote a letter to the RWB in early 2016, saying the council was of the opinion that the World Freedom Index rankings "could either be on the basis of statistical data or perception of an individual or group of individuals".

-- PTI

Also read: How free is the press in India?

A Bharatiya Janata Party lawmaker from Madhya Pradesh believes that "late marriages" are the reason behind "love jihad" and has advised parents to marry off their daughters "on time".

Gopal Parmar, lawmaker from Agar Malwa, explains that earlier when the elders of the family fixed marriages in childhood, "those relationships used to last longer".

"Ever since the 18-year 'disease' (legal age for a girl's marriage) became legal, many girls started eloping," said Parmar.

He goes on to say that there are "shrewd men and criminals" who pretend to be nice, courteous and target school girls, who easily fall into their trap.

"As the girls reach adolescence, their mind starts wandering. I urge the mothers to remain vigilant of the love jihad," Parmar said.

Breaking his silence on the rise in incidents of right-wing groups preventing Muslims from offering namaz in open spaces in Gurugram, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Sunday said such congregations should be restricted to mosques or Idgahs rather than public areas.

The CM, however, acknowledged that it was the states duty to maintain law and order while saying there had been an increase in instances of namaz being offered in the open.

It is our duty to maintain law and order. There has been an increase in offering namaz in open. Namaz should be read in Mosques or Idgahs rather than public spaces, Khattar was quoted as saying.

Several outfits, under the Sanyukt Hindu Sangharsh Samiti, have called for a ban on namaz in open spaces after six people were arrested on April 20 for disrupting Friday prayers at a vacant plot in Sector 53 with chants of Jai Sri Ram and Radhe Radhe.

No one is immune to fake news, not even Shashi Tharoor. The Congress MP tweeted early on Sunday that he might have been taken in by fake news when he shared a news article on former RBI chief Raghuram Rajan being appointed as the head of Bank of England.

Tharoor had tweeted on Saturday night that Rajan had been appointed as the Bank of England chief and batted for an Indian-origin UK Prime Minister to complete a reverse colonisation.

Tharoor had shared a report along with the tweet.

Within a couple of hours, however, Tharoor tweeted that he was taken in by fake news and thanked a news portal for setting the record straight.

While some Twitter users lauded Tharoor for owning up to his mistake, others criticised the Thiruvananthapuram MP for not doing due diligence before sharing the report.

Tharoors tweet follows days of speculation on Rajans move to the Bank of England. UK-based Financial Times had reported last month that the former RBI governor was one of the contenders for the job.

11:40 PM Modi addresses rally in Chitradurga

After addressing four rallies yesterday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is out on the campaign in Karnataka today, addressing another four rallies.

Here are the highlights from the Chitradurga rally:

>> Look at the Congress -- leaders, they do not know, whom they should remember and celebrate. They are at the forefront of celebrating Jayantis of Sultans

>> Chitradurga will soon become the hotspot of science and technology. It is a matter of pride that the mission Chandrayan 2 is taking place on this soil by ISRO unit of Chitradurga

>> Congress is obviously uncomfortable today because the highest offices of the land are occupied by people from poor and humble backgrounds. That is why now Congress prefers to mislead in the name of the Dalit community

>> Nijalingappa ji, the proud son of this land was insulted by one family who cannot tolerate independent leaders emerging in the Party. Nijalingappa ji committed the crime of questioning some of the policies from the time of Pandit Nehru

11:25

JUST IN: Four terrorists killed in encounter with security forces in Kashmir's Shopian district, says army

11:11 France slams Trump for remarks on guns and Paris attacks

France is sternly rejecting US President Donald Trump's argument that if Parisians had more guns they could have stopped the deadly 2015 extremist attacks on the French capital.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian expressed his "firm disapproval" of Trump's remarks and vigorously defended France's gun controls.

In a statement today, Le Drian said gun violence statistics "do not lead us to reconsider France's choice on this issue." Gun violence death rates are much higher in the US.

Le Drian continued: "Free circulation of weapons in society does not constitute a rampart against terrorist attacks, to the contrary, it can facilitate ... this type of attack."

Islamic State attackers killed 130 people in Paris' Bataclan concert hall, cafes and the national stadium.

Trump had made controversial comments at a National Rifle Association meeting.

11:04 Big wilful defaulters owe PNB Rs 15,172 cr

Big wilful defaulters owed Rs 15,171.91 crore in loans to Punjab National Bank at the end of March this year.

The data from the bank relates to those wilful defaulters who have taken loans of Rs 25 lakh and above but did not repay despite the ability to do so.

The liability on such defaulters rose by 1.8 per cent from Rs 14,904.65 crore in February.

The public sector lender has been putting out the names of wilful defaulters and firms since June 2017.

Within ten months, these defaults have grown by 28 per cent, from Rs 11,879.74 crore.

The major wilful defaulters include chemical manufacturer Kudos Chemie Ltd -- Rs 1,301.82 crore; Kingfisher Airlines -- Rs 597.44 crore; VMC Systems Ltd -- Rs 296.08 crore; Arvind Remedies -- Rs 158.16 crore and Indu Projects Ltd Rs 102.83 crore.

All these companies were provided loans by PNB as part of consortium lending. Others in the list include Winsome Diamonds and Jewellery -- Rs 899.70 crore; Zoom Developers -- Rs 410.18 crore; Jas infrastructure and Power Ltd -- Rs 410.96 crore; Apple Industries -- Rs 248.34 crore; Nafed -- Rs 224.24 crore; MBS Jewellers Pvt Ltd -- Rs 266.17 crore and S Kumar Nationwide -- Rs 146.82 crore.

For third quarter ended December 31 of last fiscal, 2017-18, PNB's gross non-performing assets (NPAs) or bad loans stood at Rs 57,519.41 crore or 12.11 per cent of the gross advances.

In 2016-17, the gross NPAs were 12.53 per cent of the gross advances at Rs 55,370.45 crore.

Hit by the over Rs 13,000 crore fraud, PNB has been trying to clean up its books. Multiple agencies are investigating the case and working on bringing back the alleged wrongdoers billionaire diamond jeweller Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi of Gitanjali Gems, who have fled the country. -- PTI

10:26 BSF jawan shoots dead 3 colleagues, kills self

A Border Security Force jawan allegedly shot dead three colleagues with his service weapon before committing suicide today at a border outpost at Maguruli in Unakoti district, about 180 km from Agartala, police said.

S P (Special branch), Shankar Debnath said the BSF jawan opened fire on three others including a head constable before killing himself. The incident happened at around 1 am.

The head constable died on the spot.

One of the injured jawans succumbed to injuries at Unakoti district hospital and another jawan, who was shifted to ILS Hospital in Agartala, also died, Debnath told PTI.

He said investigation is on and a detailed report is awaited. When contacted, a highly placed BSF official confirmed the incident. -- PTI

Image only for representation.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday will address four rallies in Karnataka ahead of the upcoming state legislative assembly elections.In the last leg of his campaigning for May 12 polls.

The PM will visit Karnataka's Chitradurga, Raichur, Jama Khandi and Hubli area.

Apart from this Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief, Amit Shah will also hold multiple rallies in the poll-bound state.

He will hold two public meetings and will take part in a road show in Belagavi.

Meanwhile, the Election Commission-appointed surveillance teams have seized suspect cash, jewellery and other inducements worth over Rs 120 crore in the poll-bound state yesterday.

Cash amounting to over Rs 67.27 crore, over five lakh litres of liquor worth Rs 23.36 crore, gold valued at 43.17 crore and other items such as pressure cookers, sarees, sewing machines, gutkha, laptops and vehicles, among others, worth about Rs 18.57 crore, was seized.

Karnataka goes to polls on May 12 and 2,655 candidates, including 219 women, are in the poll fray for securing 224 seats up. The results will be declared on May 15. -- ANI

An encounter broke out today between security forces and terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district, police said.

Two security personnel have sustained injuries in the ongoing encounter.

Acting on specific information about the presence of militants in Badigam village in Zainapora area of the south Kashmir district, security forces launched a cordon and search operation there this morning, a police official said.

"The search operation turned into an encounter after the hiding militants fired upon the forces, which was retaliated," the official said.

"The gunfight is still on," he said, adding that further details were awaited. -- PTI

Image for representation only.

Sanjeeb Mukherjee/Business Standard reports:

Another thunderstorm, days after a big one killed more than 100 people across North India, might strike around May 7-8, the weatherman said.

It could be accompanied by wind speeds of around 90 km per hour.

The India Meteorological Department, in an update issued a few days ago, had indicated the possibility of a fresh thunderstorm accompanied by gusty winds in parts of Rajasthan, western Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Chandigarh, Punjab and Haryana.

"There might be a repeat of last week's massive thunderstorm again around May 7-8 in north-west Rajasthan and adjoining Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and west UP as once again a western disturbance is clashing with a cyclonic circulation," said Mahesh Palawal, chief meteorologist at private weather forecasting agency Skymet.

He said such intense thunderstorms happen whenever day temperatures rise sharply.

"We are expecting a western disturbance to approach the hill region on May 5. This will have an effect on the north-western plains," IMD senior scientist M Mahapatra told a news agency.

"The intensity of the thunderstorm can only be predicted two hours prior to the activity," Mahapatra added.

The last thunderstorm that stuck Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, killed over 100 people and destroyed almost 30-40 of the standing mango crop in the main growing districts of Saharanpur, Pilibhit, Muzaffarnagar, Bareli, Rampur and Sitapur.

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