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Andhra Pradesh Lok Sabha elections: Seats, schedule, NDA candidates and more

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Andhra Pradesh, comprising 25 parliamentary constituencies, is among the few states where the local political parties are popular among the masses, while the national parties — the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress — have to struggle for seats.

Voting for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and the state Assembly polls will be held simultaneously in Andhra Pradesh on May 13. The counting of votes will be held on June 4.

To achieve its target of ‘Abki Baar 400 Paar’ (400 seats this time), the BJP is contesting polls in the state in alliance with N Chandrababu Naidu’s Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Pawan Kalyan-led Jana Sena Party (JSP). In a triangular contest, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is pitted against the Congress-led INDIA bloc, which includes the Left Front, and the ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP), led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.

During the 2019 general elections, the YSRCP emerged as the largest party in Andhra Pradesh, winning 22 of the 25 seats and receiving a vote share of 49.89%. The remaining three constituencies went to the TDP, which secured a 40.19% vote share. The BJP and Congress, meanwhile, failed to open their accounts in the state.

As per the seat-sharing agreement in the NDA, the TDP is contesting on 17 parliamentary constituencies, while the BJP has got six seats and left the remaining two for Pawan Kalyan’s JSP.

Voting dates

Polling for the 2024 general elections in the state will be conducted in the fourth phase on May 13. All the seats in Andhra Pradesh will vote in a single phase. During the 2019 polls, the state registered a total voter turnout of 80.38%.

Total seats

In total, there are 25 parliamentary constituencies in the state. Along with Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh is the ninth-largest state in the number of Lok Sabha seats. Out of the 25 constituencies, four seats are reserved for the SC candidates, while one is reserved for the SC candidates. The remaining 20 seats are unreserved.

NDA candidates

With the help of BJP and JSP, the TDP is planning for a strong comeback in the state, both in Lok Sabha as well as in the state Assembly polls. Here is a list of candidates announced by the NDA allies for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections in Andhra Pradesh.

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Record! Over 4 billion shares of one company change hands in one day

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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After the follow-on public offer (FPO), new shares of Vodafone Idea got listed on the stock exchanges today at a premium of 9% to the issue price. 

The debt-laden telco saw heavy trading activity following the listing of new shares.

Over 2.14 billion shares of Vodafone Idea traded on the NSE. The combined value of these transactions was ₹2,974.26 crore. 

Similarly, over 2.08 billion shares changed hands on the BSE and the combined value of the transactions was more than ₹2,888 crore.

Shares of Vodafone Ideas closed 5.27% higher at ₹13.78 apiece on the BSE.

“A drop below ₹11 seems unlikely given the company’s turnaround potential. Positive signs and potential post-election tariff hikes could trigger fresh buying after this initial volatility. Aggressive investors with a long-term view might consider holding onto the stock, aiming for a potential rise towards ₹18 in the future,” Shivani Nyati, Head of Wealth, Swastika Investmart, said.

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Landslide cuts off road connectivity in Arunachal’s Dibang Valley near China border | Watch

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A large section of National Highway-313, a lifeline connecting the Dibang Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, caved in due to a landslide, disrupting traffic movement in the region. The landslide was triggered by incessant rains in the northeastern state for the past few days, officials said.

The road between Hunli and Anini, which is the Dibang Valley district headquarters, was damaged due to a landslide on Wednesday night, PTI reported.

As per videos doing rounds on social media platforms, a whole section of the highway that connected Anini in the Dibang Valley district to Roing in Lower Dibang Valley was washed off in heavy rains.

According to reports, this was the only roadway that connected the Dibang Valley district to other regions.

Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu said that instructions have been issued to the concerned authorities to restore connectivity in the region.

“Disturbed to learn the inconvenience being caused to commuters due to the extensive damage to the highway between Hunli and Anini. Instructions have been issued to restore the connectivity at the earliest as this road connects Dibang Valley to the rest of the country,” Khandu wrote on X.

Disturbed to learn the inconvenience being caused to commuters due to the extensive damage to the highway between Hunli and Anini. Instructions have been issued to restore the connectivity at the earliest as this road connects Dibang Valley to the rest of the country.@PMOIndia https://t.co/xwiOu7yrJB

— Pema Khandu པདྨ་མཁའ་འགྲོ་། (Modi Ka Parivar) (@PemaKhanduBJP) April 25, 2024

Due to this, the road connectivity to the Dibang Valley district in the northeastern state was snapped after a stretch of the vital highway was damaged.

As for now, the district administration has deployed adequate machinery and workers to repair the road on a war footing.

Additional deputy commissioner (ADC) Dhurbajyoti Borah said that the administration will take a couple of days to restore the traffic movement on the highway.

However, he added that further efforts are being made to ensure smaller vehicles can ply on the road by the end of the day (Thursday).

Voting for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and Arunachal Pradesh Assembly polls were held simultaneously on April 19. The results of the Assembly polls will be announced on June 2, while the counting of votes for the general elections will be held on June 4.

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Chinese keyboard app on Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo phones has security flaw, reveals what users type

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A Chinese keyboard app that comes pre-installed on millions of Android smartphones has a critical security flaw, new research has revealed. The app’s vulnerability could potentially expose users’ sensitive information, including what they type, the Citizen Lab, an academic research group in Toronto, Canada, has revealed.

The group investigated the security of cloud-based pinyin keyboard apps already installed in the device and found that eight of nine vendors transmitted user keystrokes for vulnerabilities, potentially exposing the keystrokes of more than a billion users to eavesdroppers.

The most popular typing in Chinese is the pinyin method, based on the pinyin romanisation of Chinese characters, used by nearly 76% of the users.

“We reported these vulnerabilities to all nine vendors. Most vendors responded, took the issue seriously, and fixed the reported vulnerabilities, although some keyboard apps remain vulnerable,” they said.

“Sogou, Baidu, and iFlytek IMEs alone comprise over 95% of the market share for third-party IMEs in China, which are used by around a billion people. In addition to the users of third-party keyboard apps, we found that the default keyboards on devices from three manufacturers (Honor, OPPO, and Xiaomi) were also vulnerable to attacks.

“Devices from Samsung and Vivo also bundled a vulnerable keyboard, but it was not used by default. In 2023, Honor, OPPO, and Xiaomi alone comprised nearly 50% of the smartphone market in China,” the report said.

The study concludes with a summary of recommendations to users:

The users of QQ pinyin or the pre-installed keyboard should switch keyboards immediately.

The users of any Sogou, Baidu, or iFlytek keyboard should ensure their keyboards and operating systems are up-to-date.

The users of any Baidu IME keyboard should switch to a different keyboard or disable the ‘cloud-based’ feature in their devices.

Users with privacy concerns should not enable ‘cloud-based’ features on their keyboards or IMEs or should switch to a keyboard that does not offer ‘cloud-based’ prediction.

The iOS users should not enable ‘Full Access’ for their keyboards or IMEs who are having privacy concerns.

The users are advised to keep their devices and apps updated to protect themselves against potential threats, be mindful of the permissions granted to apps, and use reputable security software. Additionally, users should consider using alternative keyboard apps from trusted sources to mitigate the risk and protect their privacy and security.

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Horlicks drops ‘health’ label, changes to ‘functional nutritional drink’; know the difference

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Hindustan Unilever (HUL), the owner of Horlicks and Boost, has rebranded its ‘health food drinks’ category to ‘functional nutritional drinks’ (FND), following the recent regulatory changes in the health drinks category.

This comes after the Ministry of Commerce and Industry ordered all e-commerce platforms to remove drinks and beverages from the ‘healthy drinks’ category.

“NCPCR, a statutory body constituted under section (3) of the Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CPCR) Act, 2005 after its inquiry under Section 14 of CPCR Act, 2005, concluded that there is no Health Drink defined under FSS Act 2006, Rules and regulations as submitted by FSSAl and Mondelez India Food Pvt Ltd,” read the notification issued by the ministry on April 10.

Further, it stated that “all e-commerce companies/portals are hereby advised to remove drink/beverages, including Bournvita from the category of ‘health drinks’ from their sites/platforms.”

On April 24, Ritesh Tiwari, the chief financial officer of Hindustan Unilever, said, “We have changed the labels of the category to FND which is a much better way to call it.”

Tiwari noted the FND category is under-penetrated, so there is a big opportunity for growth in the same. He added that the company would focus on increasing customers and usage and giving more benefits to them to upgrade in the FND category.

Difference between health drinks and functional nutritional drinks

For years in India, malt-based beverages have been popularly referred to as health drinks. These products enhance the taste of milk, besides offering some nutritional benefits.

On April 2, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) asked e-commerce Food Business Operators (FBOs) to ensure appropriate categorisation of the food products which are sold on their respective websites. The move came after it noted instances of dairy-based beverage mixes, cereal-based beverage mixes or malt-based beverages, which are licensed under ‘Proprietary Food’, being sold on e-commerce websites under categories like ‘Health Drink’, ‘Energy Drink’ and others.

It clarified that the term ‘Health Drink’ is not defined or standardised anywhere under the FSS Act 2006 or in the rules/regulations made thereunder.

According to FSSAI, the term ‘Energy’ drinks is permitted to be used only for products that are licensed under Food Category System (FCS) 14.1.4.1 and 14.1.4.2 (Carbonated and Non-carbonated water-based flavoured drinks), standardised under sub-regulation 2.10.6 (2) of Food Product Standards and Food Additives Regulations 2011 (Caffeinated Beverage).

Proprietary Foods are food items not standardised under various FSSAI regulations but use standardised ingredients.

The reason behind the decision was to “enhance clarity and transparency regarding the nature and functional properties of the products,” the statement said.

FSSAI wants to ensure that consumers can make well-informed choices while buying a product without encountering misleading information.

This comes amid ongoing debates regarding the sugar levels in popular malt-based beverages being sold in the country.

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Dalmia Bharat tanks over 8% after Q4 results miss estimates

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Dalmia Bharat shares plummeted more than 8% on Thursday a day after the cement producer reported weak earnings for the fourth quarter of FY 2023-24.

In an exchange filing on April 24, Dalmia Bharat announced its fourth-quarter results.

The company reported a 47.5% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to ₹320 crore for the three months ending March 2024, as compared to ₹609 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. However, its revenue from operations experienced a 10% year-on-year increase to ₹4,307 crore, up from ₹3,915 crore in the same period of the preceding fiscal.

The company missed the projections on PAT as a CNBC-TV18 poll had estimated the profit to rise 10% to ₹776 crore. The revenue also remained lower than the poll estimates of ₹4,125 crore for the quarter under review.

Following the weak Q4 results, shares of Dalmia Bharat plunged as much as 8.49% to a low of ₹1,796 apiece on the BSE in morning trade on Thursday. However, the stock recovered some losses to trade 8.2% lower at 1,798.5 apiece on the BSE at 12:32 pm.

Dalmia Bharat saw an 11.8% year-on-year growth in volumes. However, at the operating level, Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortisation (EBITDA) fell to ₹654 crore in the January-March 2024 quarter, down from ₹710 crore in the previous quarter.

Puneet Dalmia, Managing Director and CEO, Dalmia Bharat Limited, said, “During FY24 we delivered a volume growth of 11.8% at 28.8Mnt and EBITDA growth of 13.4% at ₹2,639 crore. We will continue to work on gaining market share and improving realisations while deepening the cost leadership.”

Dharmender Tuteja, chief financial officer, Dalmia Bharat Limited, said “We bounced back and delivered an industry-leading volume growth of 18.5% YoY during the quarter. However, unexpected drop in cement prices led to EBITDA erosion during the quarter with EBITDA margin declining from 18.1% in Q4’23 to 15.2% in current quarter.”

Dalmia Bharat’ current capacity is pegged at 44.6 million metric tonnes (MnT). Dalmia Bharat, including its subsidiaries, is the fourth-largest cement manufacturer in India by installed capacity. The company’s manufacturing footprint spans 10 states and includes 15 manufacturing units.

Catch live market updates with CNBC-TV18.com’s blog 

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Easy Trip Planners collaborates with Adani Digital Labs to offer duty-free shopping benefits to customers

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Easy Trip Planners, the owner of travel tech platform EaseMyTrip.com, on Thursday, Aorul 25 said it has joined hands with Adani Digital Labs (ADL) to offer its customers a seamless connection to duty-free shopping right on its platform, elevating the travel planning process with convenience and luxury.

This service is accessible through pre-ordering on the EaseMyTrip website’s airport services page, the company said in a stock exchange filing.

Presently, the new feature is operational at seven major international airports in India – Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Mangaluru, Mumbai, and Thiruvananthapuram. With an exclusive array of products and extra discounts, it enhances the overall travel experience for the customers, the online tour operator said.

“By integrating the convenience of duty free shopping across multiple airports into our platform, we are not just simplifying shopping but also empowering Indian travellers with smarter, more rewarding solutions,” Nishant Pitti, CEO of EaseMyTrip, said.

A spokesperson of Adani Digital Labs said that the collaboration is poised to shape the future of travel commerce in the digital age.

Last month, Easy Trip Planners announced a partnership with Zoomcar to offer pre-booked and on-demand self-drive cars across India.

This partnership integrates Zoomcar’s wide range of self-drive vehicles into the EaseMyTrip platform, enabling users to seamlessly book their preferred Zoomcar directly through the EaseMyTrip app. This collaboration enhances travelers’ flexibility and convenience in planning their trips.

In February, the company collaborated with Zaggle Prepaid Ocean Services Ltd to offer integrated travel and expense management solutions to corporates.

Shares of Easy Trip Planners were trading 1.04% lower at ₹46.48 apiece on BSE at 11.51 am.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Amitabh Bachchan, AR Rahman honoured with Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar award; Piku actor says, ‘I am fortunate’

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan and legendary musician AR Rahman have been honoured with the Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar Puraskar. The two stalwarts of Indian cinema were presented the award on April 24, Wednesday, at Mumbai’s Vile Parle to mark the memorial day of Deenanath Mangeshkar, the theatre-music veteran and father of the Mangeshkar siblings.

Singer Usha Mangeshkar presented the award to the Piku actor. Earlier, Asha Bhosle was expected to honour the star with the award but she couldn’t be at the event due to health concerns.

For the big day, Bachchan was dressed in an ivory kurta pyjama set paired with a multi-coloured shawl. Accompanying him for the event was his son Abhishek Bachchan.

Bachchan, in his speech, expressed heartfelt thanks, saying, “I’m fortunate to receive this award today. I never really regarded myself worthy of such an award, but Hridyanath ji tried hard so that I could come here. He even invited me to this ceremony last year.”

The actor even shared with the audience that his father, Harivansh Rai Bachchan, a celebrated Hindi poet, used to compare Lata Mangeshkar’s voice to ‘shehad ki dhaar’. The Baghban actor added, “The sweetness in her voice was honey and as the flow of honey never breaks, her ‘swar’ never breaks. Whenever someone hits the right chord, our soul meets with ‘parmatma’. And Lata Mangeshkar ji’s ‘swar’ joins us with God.”

#WATCH | Mumbai: Actor Amitabh Bachchan honoured with Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar award at Deenanath Mangeshkar Natyagriha. pic.twitter.com/OXNUbIUtr4

— ANI (@ANI) April 24, 2024

Meanwhile, AR Rahman shared a photo on his social media handle, celebrating his achievement. The picture of the musician as he held the award in his hand was accompanied by a short write-up. “Honoured to get the #denanathmangeshkar award today. I adore the legacy of the Mangeshkar family and their dedication to art! #latamangeshkar #hridayanathmangeshkar #ashabhosle EPI (sic),” he wrote.

Honoured to get the #Denanathmangeshkar award today.
I adore the legacy of the Mangeshkar family and their dedication to art! #latamangeshkar #hridayanathmangeshkar @ashabhosle #EPI pic.twitter.com/zWMzvVGJDr

— A.R.Rahman (@arrahman) April 24, 2024

The Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar Puraskar was instituted by the Mangeshkar family in memory of melody queen Lata Mangeshkar after her death on February 6, 2022. The first recipient of the prestigious award was Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while Lata Mangeshkar’s sister Asha Bhosle bagged the award in 2023 for her contribution to music in Indian cinema.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

JEE Main 2024 results declared: Record 56 candidates score 100 percentile

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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A record 56 candidates have scored the perfect 100 in the Joint Entrance Examination (JEE) Main 2024. The majority of students are from Telangana.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) released the results for JEE Main 2024 for Paper 1 (BE/BTech) of the January and April sessions on Wednesday night.

The NTA conducted the JEE Main 2024 exams in two sessions – the first session was held on January 28, 29, 30, 31, and February 1, while the second session took place on April 4, 5, 6, 8, and 9. A total of 9.24 lakh candidates had registered, out of which 8.2 lakh students appeared for the exam, reports said.

Jump in 100 percentiles

In 2024, the number of candidates who scored 100 percentile has increased by 13 in comparison with the last year. A total of 56 candidates have received 100 scores in Paper 1 (BE/BTech), out of which two are female candidates — Sanvi Jain from Karnataka and Shayna Sinha from Delhi — while the rest are male candidates. Last time, this number stood at 43, which included one female student — Ridhi Kamlesh Kumar Maheshwari from Karnataka.

Telangana records maximum toppers again

Like 2023, this year too, Telangana has recorded the highest number of candidates who achieved a perfect score. While 11 candidates scored 100 per cent last year, that number has increased to 15 in 2024.

Telangana is followed by Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, who have reported seven candidates each to have scored a perfect score. Delhi NCR’s figure of candidates with 100 percentiles has also jumped from two to six in 2024.

In the January session, candidates scored 100 percentiles, while in the April session, the number increased to 33. Among the 56 toppers, 40 are from the general category, 10 are from the OBC category, and six are from gen-EWS.

JEE Cut-off

General category: In 2024, the cut-off for the JEE (Advanced) is 93.23, which is an increase from 90.77 in 2023. Before that, it was 88.4 in 2022 and 87.9 in 2021, respectively.

OBC: Cut-off has increased to 79.67 in 2024 from 73.61 in 2023. Earlier, it was 67 in 2022, 68.02 in 2021 and 72.8 in 2020.

SC and ST:  For the Scheduled Caste candidates, the cut-off is 60.09 this time, which has seen a major jump from 51.97 in 2023. Before that, it was 43.08 in 2022 and 46.8 in 2021. On the other hand, the cut-off for Scheduled Tribe candidates is 46.69. In 2023, it was 37.23, while before that it was 26.7 and 34.6 in 2022 and 2021, respectively.

EWS: For the candidates under this category, the cut-off this time is 75.62, compared to 63.11 last year.

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KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow