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Olympic silver medallist P V Sindhu sailed into the semi-finals of the women’s singles at the 83rd Senior National Badminton Championship in Guwahati on Thursday.

She defeated Riya Mookherjee 21-16, 21-7 in her quartersclash.

Earlier in the day, Sindhu defeated Malvika Bansod of Nagpur 21-11,21-13 in the pre-quarterfinals. Sindhu along with 6 other women shuttlers weregiven direct entry in the singles pre-quarterfinals after a super draw was conducted last night.

Top seed Sameer Verma, playing the next match at the Assam Badminton Academy courts, conceded a men’s singles encounter against AryamannTandon midway at 21-16,  1-8 after aggravating a achilles heelproblem.

Three other pre-quarterfinals involving  Saina Nehwal,Parupalli Kashyap and B Sai Praneeth, were rescheduled to the evening sessionafter Saina Nehwal refused to play due to the uneven surface of the court.

In men’s doubles, top seeds Arjun MR and Shlok Ramchandran andthe pair of Pranaav Jerry Chopra and Chirag Shetty entered thesemi-finals.

The duo of Arun George and Sanyam Shukla and the pair of  Krishna Prasad G and Dhruv Kapila also entered the semi-finals.

Alfonso Curaon’s Roma claims award for the best film, while British Film ‘The Favorite’ sweeps the awards ceremony with the best actress and supporting actress awards; Rami Malek bags best actor’s award for ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’.

Costume romp “The Favourite” was the biggest winner at the BAFTAs on Sunday taking seven awards including Outstanding British film, Original screenplay, Production design, Costume design and Make up.

Rami Malek took the Leading actor prize for his portrayal of late Queen frontman Freddie Mercury in “Bohemian Rhapsody”

“Blank Panther” actress Letitia Wright won the Rising star award. The British 25-year-old made an emotional acceptance speech, thanking BAFTA for helping her get through depression.

Netflix black and white film “Roma” picked up the best film prize, as well as director, at Britain’s top movie honors.

Alfonso Cuaron’s semi-autobiographical film, about a domestic worker in 1970s Mexico, has won a string of prizes this awards season, further cementing its path to potential Oscar success.

The CBI will continue the questioning of Kolkata Police Commissioner Rajeev Kumar in chit fund scam cases on the second day today at the agency’s office at Shillong in Meghalaya.

Kumar was questioned for nearly eight hours on Saturday. The CBI also called the Magistrate to be present at the questioning in case any issue arises of ill-treatment of the Police Commissioner.

The Supreme Court had, on Tuesday, directed the Kolkata Police Chief to appear before the CBI and faithfully cooperate in the investigation of cases arising out of the Saradha chit fund scam.

The court had made it clear that he will not be arrested.

Meanwhile, the CBI has summoned former Rajya Sabha MP and Trinamool Congress leader Kunal Ghosh to appear before the agency for questioning in the case.

Union Finance Minister Piyush Goyal today rejected the allegations of Opposition parties on the Rafale deal, saying that the people of the country have complete trust in Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Union Minister was speaking to media in Mumbai after BJP launched “Bharat ke Mann ki Baat, Modi ke Saath”, a month-long exercise to seek people’s suggestions to help it prepare its manifesto for the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.

Terming the allegations as baseless, the Minister said, it will not affect BJP’s poll prospects.

Attacking the Mamata Banerjee-led government in West Bengal, Piyush Goyal said, there is anarchy like condition in the state. He exuded confidence that Trinamool Congress will be dethroned from power.

On reports of Twitter’s CEO and top officials declining to appear before the Parliamentary Committee on IT, Goyal said, the Chairman of Rajya Sabha and the Speaker of Lok Sabha are the authorities who can speak on the matter.

He said the government cannot express their views on such issues.

Twitter officials were summoned over the issue of safeguarding citizens’ rights on social media platforms.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today dedicated to the nation the 1.33 million metric ton capacity Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) facility at Guntur in Andhra Pradesh.

Addressing the gathering, PM  Modi said the project is not only important for Andhra Pradesh but for the entire nation to meet its energy needs.

He wished the people of the state saying they are ahead and progressive in all fields.

 Prime Minister will also inaugurate Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited’s Vashishta and S1 development project located in the Krishna-Godavari Offshore Basin.

The Prime Minister will lay the foundation stone for setting up of a new terminal of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) at Krishnapatnam.

After his programmes at Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, Prime Minister Modi will reach Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu this afternoon.

From there, PM Modi will inaugurate several development projects and lay foundation stone for a few other schemes in the state through video-conferencing.

The state governor Bunwarilal Purohit, chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswamy, union minister Pon Radhakrishnan and others will also participate in the programme.

Multi-tier security arrangements have been made in Tiruppur, in view of Prime Minister’s visit.

The Prime Minister will then proceed to Karnataka, where he will lay the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology- Dharwad and Indian Institute of Information Technology -Dharwad at Hubli.

City Gas Distribution Project at Dharwad will also be unveiled.

PM Modi will dedicate to the nation SPR facilities in Mangalore and Padur. Doubling of the Chikjajur-Mayakonda railway line is another highlight.

Prime Minister will also address a public rally later in the evening.

Several parts of North India witnessed heavy rain and snowfall disrupting normal life at many places; In Kashmir, the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway remained closed for the second consecutive day due to heavy snowfall in the region.

The authorities have issued an avalanche warning for 16 of the 22 districts of Jammu and Kashmir for the next 24 hours.

In Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh, schools and colleges in several districts remained closed due to bad weather conditions. In Himachal Pradesh, high and mid hills including state capital Shimla and its surrounding area have received heavy snowfall.

Uttar Pradesh is shivering under intense cold as rain lashed many parts of the state, bringing down temperatures. Several Districts are witnessing light rain from the last few hours, and at some places heavy fog has disrupted normal life.

Delhi and its adjacent areas also reported heavy rain and hailstorm on Thursday evening. As many as 38 flights, including 23 domestic and nine international, were diverted from the Delhi airport to nearby cities between 6 and 8.45 PM. 24 houses collapsed and at least 20 people were injured in Noida when a sudden storm swept through a village in sector 3 area on Thursday night.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his reply to the debate on motion of thanks to President’s address in Lok Sabha; highlights the achievement of his Govt in the last 55 months in comparison to 55 years of Congress rule; says Opposition is hungry for power, while his Govt. is working with the spirit of service to fulfill people’s aspirations.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi hit back at the Congress over the Rafale issue, as he alleged that the Congress did not want the Indian Air Force to be strong. Replying on motion of thanks to President’s address in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister took potshots at attempts to cobble a grand alliance of opposition parties to take on the BJP, saying people do not want a “Mahamilavat”.  PM also contrasted the 55 months of his govt at the Centre with 55 years of Congress rule in the past.

Responding to the debate on Motion of Thanks on the President’s address in Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave an account of the work done by his govt.

In his nearly 90 minutes long address, PM Modi spoke on how his govt took the country out of the morass of despondency and charted a course towards a New India. Taking on the Congress for its opposition to the Rafale deal, PM accused it of trying to weaken the Indian Air Force.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi pointed to the various defence scams that emerged in Congress govts, saying no defence deal was untouched by the culture of kickbacks, a culture that has been replaced by transparency. In defence deals, he also gave details of his govt’s anti-corruption drive.

Taking a swipe at the Congress for alleging weakening of institutions, PM said ‘Ulta chor Chowkidar ko daate’…meaning ‘the pot is calling the kettle black’.

PM also questioned the opposition’s narrative on Election Commission and EVMs.

Comparing his govt’s 55 months tenure with 55 years of Congress govts, PM said : While Congress govts gave 12 crore gas connections in 55 years; His govt gave 13 crore gas connections in 55 months. He said while only 50% population got bank accounts in 55 years of Congress govts, his govt has taken the coverage to nearly 100% of the population.

He said that in 55 months his govt has electrified all villages and will soon electrify all households and has built 1 crore 30 lakh houses.

Taking on the opposition ‘mahagathbandhan’, PM described it as ‘mahamilavati’.

PM said that fugitive economic offenders are feeling the heat in his govt with stringent laws enacted by his govt.

Responding to opposition criticism on surgical strikes, PM said Congress govts could not conceive surgical strikes because they had kept the armed forces deprived of basic requirements like bullet proof jackets which were fulfilled by his govt.

Prime Minister sought to drive home the message that for his govt national interest is supreme and it is working assiduously to build a New India.

Rejecting allegations of rising unemployment, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said crores of new jobs have been created in formal and unorganised sectors including transport, hotels and infrastructure.

Prime Minister  Narendra Modi addresses public rally in at Raigarh, Chhattisgarh; hits out at the Congress government in the state for exiting the Ayushman Bharat Yojana; targets State government for keeping the CBI out of the state.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a BJP rally at Raigarh in Chattisgarh. PM said he had a very old association with the state. He described victory and loss as a part of life. PM congratulated BJP workers in the state for their dedication. He hit out at the Congress government in the state for exiting the Ayushman Bharat Yojana. PM Modi had inaugurated the first health and Wellness centre under Ayushman Bharat in Bijapur in Chattisgarh in April last year.

PM also targetted the State government for keeping the CBI out of the state. He asked…what is it that they have to hide?

Prime Minister hit out at the first family of the Congress alleging that most of them are facing investigations and court cases in corruption cases.

Prime Minister said Congress uses farm loan waivers as a political tool. In contrast, the Modi government is acting swiftly to empower farmers through schemes like PM Samman Nidhi Yojana. This scheme ensures a direct transfer of Rs 6000 per year into accounts of small farmers with up to 2 hectares of land.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also visit Jalpaiguri in West Bengal today. During his visit, Prime Minister will inaugurate key development projects at Maynaguri in Jalpaiguri district, including laying the foundation stone for the four laning of 41.7 km long Falakata – Salsalabari section of NH -31 D. The Prime Minister will also inaugurate New High Court Circuit Bench at Jalpaiguri.
With the motive of taking the fruits of development to every citizen, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit West Bengal on Friday. Prime Minister will be unveiling number of projects at Maynaguri in Jalpaiguri district, including laying the foundation stone for the four laning of 41.7 km long Falakata – Salsalabari section of NH -31 D.

The project will reduce the distance from Siliguri to Salsalabari by nearly 50 km. The new section will incorporate 3 Railway Over Bridges, 2 Flyovers, 3 Vehicular Underpasses, 8 Major Bridges and 17 Minor Bridges. The National Highway will improve market access for agricultural goods in the region. The improved connectivity will also lead to an increase in tourism in the region. All this in turn will give a major boost to socio-economic activity in the state, opening up employment opportunities for the local people.

With an aim of providing speedy justice to the people of Darjeeling and adjoining areas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will also inaugurate New High Court Circuit Bench at Jalpaiguri.

Earlier, The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the establishment of Circuit Bench of Calcutta High Court at Jalpaiguri. It will have jurisdiction over four districts namely Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Jalpaiguri and Cooch Behar. Residents of these four districts will now have to travel less than 100 km to access the bench instead of 600km trip to Calcutta High Court.

Enthusiasm can be seen among the workers as Prime Minister will address a public rally in chura bhandar in Jalpaiguri. Preparation are in full swing as huge crowd expected for PM Modi’s rally.

Prime Minister’s visit to West bengal will give a fresh thrust to the BJP’s campaign blitzkrieg ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.

India beat New Zealand by seven wickets in the second Twenty20 International to tie the three-match series at 1-1, in Auckland on Friday.

Earlier, all-rounder Colin de Grandhomme’s brilliant half-century and Ross Taylor’s disciplined innings helped New Zealand post 158/8 against India in the second Twenty20 International match here on Friday.

Losing four wickets for just 50 runs in 7.5 overs, Taylor and Grandhomme forged a crucial 77-run partnership for the sixth wicket and helped their team post a good total.

Opting to bat, New Zealand started the proceedings cautiously but in the third over, Bhuvneshwar Kumar picked up Tim Seifert (12), who was the top scorer in the last match.

Colin Munro (12) and Kane Williamson (20) then joined and started playing shots. While trying to increase the scoring rate, Munro was dismissed by spinner Krunal Pandya in the sixth over.

Teams: India: Rohit Sharma (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Vijay Shankar, Dinesh Karthik, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Khaleel Ahmed. New Zealand: Kane Williamson (c), Colin Munro, Tim Seifert (wk), Ross Taylor, Daryl Mitchell, Colin de Grandhomme, Mitchell Santner, Scott Kuggeleijn, Tim Southee, Ish Sodhi, Lockie Ferguson.

1st T20: India lose to New Zealand by 80 runs 

The Reserve Bank of India on Thursday cut benchmark lending rate by 0.25 per cent to 6.25 per cent on expectation of inflation staying within its target range, a move that may make home and other loans cheaper.

The RBI, under its new Governor Shaktikanta Das, changed the monetary policy stance to ‘neutral’ from the earlier ‘calibrated tightening’, signalling further softening of rates if inflation remain benign.

With Deputy Governor Viral Acharya and another member Chetan Ghate voting for a status quo, Das and three others outvoted them for reduction in repo rate to 6.25 per cent from the existing 6.50 per cent.

Accordingly, reverse repo was reduced to 6 per cent from 6.25 per cent. Repo rate is the rate at which commercial banks borrow money from the RBI; while reverse repo rate is the rate at which RBI collects money from banks.

The RBI cut its estimates on headline inflation which cooled off to an 18-month low of 2.2 per cent in December for the next year, and expects the number to come at 2.8 per cent in March quarter, 3.2-3.4 per cent in first half of next fiscal and 3.9 per cent in third quarter of FY20.

“Headline inflation is projected to remain soft in the near term reflecting the current low level of inflation and the benign food inflation outlook,” the MPC resolution said, adding that it needs to be watchful of vegetable prices, oil prices, trade tensions, health and education inflation, financial market volatility and monsoon outcomes. The rate cut is in consonance with achieving the medium-term objective of maintaining inflation at the 4 per cent level while supporting growth, it said.

“The need is to strengthen private investment activity and buttress private consumption,” the resolution said, noting that investment activity is recovering, supported mainly by public spending on infrastructure. It can be noted that a cut in rates can make loans cheaper and can boost investment activities in the economy.

The RBI expects GDP growth to be at 7.4 per cent in FY20, which is up from the 7.2 per cent estimated for FY19 by the CSO.

The interim budget proposals for FY20 will boost aggregate demand by raising disposable incomes, but the full effect of the measures will take time to play out, the MPC said. The resolution said recent unusual pick-up in the prices of health and education services could be a one-off phenomenon, adding that the crude oil price outlook remains broadly the same as in the December policy.

The RBI had hiked rates twice in quick succession, in June and August, last year fearing an increase in inflation and also changed the stance of policy to ‘calibrated tightening’ from ‘neutral’ earlier.

On the regulatory policies front, the RBI proposed relaxations on foreign borrowings by companies undergoing insolvency resolutions to pay off the local lenders, redefined bulk deposits as those above Rs 2 crore from the earlier Rs 1 crore, align risk weights of bank loans to NBFCs with their ratings rather than a blanket 100 per cent earlier and also harmonise categories of NBFCs.