India

NEW DELHI, March 10 (Xinhua) -- India's federal government signed a 125 million U.S. dollar loan agreement with the World Bank to support access to social protection services in the eastern state of West Bengal, officials said Thursday.

"The Government of India, the Government of West Bengal and the World Bank signed a 125 million U.S. dollars International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan to support efforts to help poor and vulnerable groups access social protection services in the state of West Bengal," the ministry of finance said in a statement.

Chandigarh, Mar 10 (PTI) As the AAP appeared set for a clean sweep in Punjab, the party's national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday congratulated the people of the state for this revolution .

"Many congratulations to the people of Punjab for this revolution, Kejriwal, the Delhi chief minister, said in a tweet in Hindi.

In the tweet, he also posted a picture of him standing with the AAP's chief ministerial candidate and MP Bhagwant Mann, with both leaders flashing victory sign.

Lucknow, Mar 10 (PTI) Senior Samajwadi Party leader Mohd Azam Khan is leading in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur constituency by about 4000 votes, according to poll trends.

After the initial round of counting, Azam got 5,090 votes while his BJP rival Akash Saxena got 1,006 votes, according to the EC.

SP candidate Khan is presently lodged in Sitapur jail in connection with a number of cases lodged against him in Rampur district.

Lucknow, Mar 10 (PTI) The ruling BJP seems to be on course to retain power in Uttar Pradesh, with poll trends on Thursday showing the party alliance leading in 269 seats as against 121 of its nearest rival Samajwadi Party.

The state has 403 assembly seats and 202 seats are needed to form a majority government. Trends are available for 399 seats so far.

Kanpur:A straw-laden tractor-trolley rammed into the temple gate here, leading to the deaths of the driver and his helper.

The temple is located in Umri village under the limits of Saadh police station area of Ghatampur.

The police said that after the tractor-trolley rammed into the gate of the temple, the two people were killed after the debris fell upon them.

The villagers rushed to the spot and tried to rescue the driver Rambabu Kuril, 38, and helper Mahesh, 35, but both of them had succumbed to their injuries.

Coimbatore, Mar 8 (PTI) After his hopes of joining the Indian Army were dashed, a 21-year old youth from the city has enlisted with the Ukrainian army to fight against the invading Russian troops.

The matter came to light when some central intelligence officials visited the house of Sainikesh Ravichandran in Thudiyalur near here a few days ago to collect his details.

Mumbai, Mar 8 (PTI) Sliding for the fifth consecutive day, the rupee depreciated by 7 paise to close at a lifetime low of 77 against the US dollar on Tuesday, weighed by surging crude oil prices amid the Russia-Ukraine war.

Heavy foreign fund outflows and prevailing risk aversion globally added to the woes, forex traders said.

At the interbank forex market, the local unit opened at 77.02 against the greenback and witnessed an intra-day high of 76.71 and a low of 77.05.

Lucknow, Mar 8 (PTI) Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav accused the ruling BJP on Tuesday of attempting to "steal" votes and said exit polls are meant to create a perception that the saffron party will emerge victorious in the Uttar Pradesh election.

At a press conference here, he also alleged that government officials in Lucknow are directing their subordinates in the districts to slow down the counting of votes and prolong the process till late night where the chances of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning the electoral contest are slim.

Bhawanipatna, Mar 8 (PTI) Three persons have been arrested for allegedly providing logistics to the Maoists in Odisha's Kalahandi district, police said on Tuesday.

Acting on inputs, police intercepted the three suspects, who were moving suspiciously on the outskirts of Lanjigarh.

Two new walkie-talkies sets were recovered from their possession. They had planned to deliver it to the Naxals of the Kalahandi-Kandhamal-Boudh-Nayagarh (KKBN) division.

Gandhinagar, Mar 8 (PTI) The BJP or the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) has nothing to do with Mahatma Gandhi's assassin Nathuram Godse, Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi asserted in the legislative Assembly on Tuesday, seeking to rebutt Congress accusations that they had a soft corner for Godse.

The minister's assertion came in the backdrop of constant accusations from the opposition Congress that the ruling BJP was soft on Godse.