77-yar-old self-styled godman Asaram Bapu convicted of raping minor girl

New Delhi, Feb 18: India emerged as the world's fifth-largest economy by overtaking the UK and France in 2019, says a report.

A US-based think tank World Population Review in its report said that India is developing into an open-market economy from its previous autarkic policies.

"India's economy is the fifth-largest in the world with a GDP of $2.94 trillion, overtaking the UK and France in 2019 to take the fifth spot," it said.

The size of the UK economy is $2.83 trillion and that of France is $2.71 trillion.

The report further said that in purchasing power parity (PPP) terms, India's GDP (PPP) is $10.51 trillion, exceeding that of Japan and Germany. Due to India's high population, India's GDP per capita is $2,170 (for comparison, the US is $62,794).

India's real GDP growth, however, it said is expected to weaken for the third straight year from 7.5 per cent to 5 per cent.

The report observed that India's economic liberalisation began in the early 1990s and included industrial deregulation, reduced control on foreign trade and investment, and privatisation of state-owned enterprises.

"These measures have helped India accelerate economic growth," it said.

India's service sector is the fast-growing sector in the world accounting for 60 per cent of the economy and 28 per of employment, the report said, adding that manufacturing and agriculture are two other significant sectors of the economy.

The US-based World Population Review is an independent organisation without any political affiliations.

Mar 7: Two Malayalam news channels, Asianet News and Media One, which were banned by the information and broadcasting ministry for their coverage of the recent violence in Delhi on Friday evening, were allowed to resume telecasting on Saturday morning.

While Asianet News appeared to have begun operations around 7am on Saturday, Media One was screening content by 9.30am.

The ministry of information and broadcasting had imposed a 48-hour ban on Asianet News and Media One for their coverage of the Delhi violence for 48 hours from 7.30pm on Friday. Both Asianet News and Media One were barred under Rule 6(1 c) and Rule 6(1e) of the Cable Television Networks Act, 1994.

The ministry of information and broadcasting alleged Asianet News and Media One were "biased" and critical of the RSS and Delhi Police.

The ban on Asianet News and Media One triggered a torrent of criticism of the move. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor asked how "Malayalam channels inflame communal passions in Delhi?" and alleged some English news channels were continuing "their brazen distortions" with impunity.

In a statement issued on Friday after the ban, Media One termed the move "unfortunate and condemnable" and called it a "blatant attack against free and fair reporting". Media One called it "an order to stop free and fair journalism".

New Delhi, Feb 11: The Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday appeared to be heading back to power for a second term in Delhi with the party leading in 52 seats of the 70 and the BJP ahead in 18 as votes for last week's assembly elections were counted, according to Election Commission figures. The contest for political power over the national capital was a bipolar one with the Congress nowhere in the reckoning, according to initial trends.

AAP supremo and chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was leading in the New Delhi seat by 4,300 seats, while his deputy Manish Sisodia from Patparganj seat was ahead by 102 votes.

BJP leader Vijender Gupta, who is also leader of opposition in the Delhi legislative assembly, was trailing by over 1,200 votes from Rohini.

As early celebrations broke out in the AAP headquarters in Rouse Avenue, BJP's Delhi unit chief Manoj Tiwari asked his party supporters not to lose hope.

"There are 27 seats where the difference of votes is between 700 to 1,000," Tiwari told reporters.

Looking ahead at victory, he said he was not nervous and was ready to take on the responsibilities that a win would bring.

"All talk is over. We have to wait for the blessings of the people. I am confident it will be a good day for BJP. We are coming to power in Delhi today. Don't be surprised if we win 55 seats," Tiwari said.

Kejriwal, who had led his party to a spectacular win of 67 of 70 seats in 2015, is expected to address party workers and the media later in the day. However, his party workers were upbeat and in celebratory mode.

"We have been saying since the beginning that the upcoming polls will be fought on the basis of work done by us... You wait and watch, we will register a massive win," AAP spokesperson Sanjay Singh told reporters.

"We hope we get such a clear majority that a message goes out that doing Hindu-Muslim politics will not work anymore," said AAP volunteer Fareen Khan at the party office.

The headquarters were decorated with blue and white balloons and big cutouts of Kejriwal were placed in different parts of the office.

Labour minister and AAP's Delhi unit convenor Gopal Rai was leading in Badarpur constituency by 1,994 votes.

Atishi, AAP's Kalkaji candidate, who was also instrumental in the transformation of Delhi government schools, was trailing by 190 votes.

AAP's Timarpur candidate Dilip Pandey was leading by over 1,500 votes.

BJP's Tajinder Singh Bagga was trailing on Hari Nagar seat by over 50 votes, while AAP's Raghav Chadha is leading from Rajinder Nagar constituency.

Congress' Chandni Chowk candidate Alka Lamba, who is sitting MLA from the constituency, was trailing by over 5,800 votes.

Counting centres are spread across 21 locations in 11 districts, including at the CWG Sports Complex in east Delhi, NSIT Dwarka in west Delhi, Meerabai Institute of Technology and G B Pant Institute of Technology in southeast Delhi, Sir CV Raman ITI, Dheerpur in central Delhi, and Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana in north Delhi.

The assembly elections were held on February 8.

A total of 672 candidates, including 593 men and 79 women, were in the fray for the hotly contested, often divisive polls with the anti-CAA protests in Shaheen Bagh occupying centrestage towards the end of the campaign.

While the AAP, of course, put forward Kejriwal, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, home minister Amit Shah and Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath were among those who extensively campaigned for the BJP.

The Congress, still recovering maybe from the death of its three-time Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit in July last year, got into campaign mode much later. Former prime minister Manmohan Singh and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were among those who campaigned for the Congress.