High inflation not because of govt policies: Montek

High spate of inflation that country is facing since March was not a result of any government policy, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia said on Wednesday. "Inflation that we are facing now is not an inflation caused by anything that the government has done," he said while launching a book on entrepreneurs in India and China by Harward Business School Professor Tarun Khanna.

The annual inflation rate has been firming up in March and climbed to 42-month high of 7.61 per cent in April.

Recalling the steps taken by the government to contain prices, Ahluwalia said: "You have exceptionally bad ways of handling inflation and we have not done that." Pointing out that steel prices have gone up by 56 per cent in one year, he said there was nothing wrong in government being concerned about inflation.

Ahluwalia, however, parried the question whether the government was contemplating to roll back export duty imposed recently to discourage exports. The RBI, he added, was doing what any other central bank would have done to contain money supply and check price rise.

Referring to performance of the economy during the post-reform period, Ahluwalia said, the difference between growth rates in India and China, which was quite large in the past, has narrowed to about 2 per cent. "China has far few elections than we have," he quipped. "If you regard the government as general practitioner looking at the health of a patient. This is not the doctor that you would want to fire. Nor a doctor you would say is doing an exceptionally bad job," Ahluwalia added.

India, he said, would need to do much more to improve upon the growth rate of 8 per cent and raise it to 9 per cent in the coming years to achieve the Plan target.(PTI)

With Jayasuriya's ton, Mumbai beat Chennai by nine wickets

While Sachin Tendulkar failed to click on his debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL), his opening-wicket partner Sanath Jayasuriya shruged off his indifferent form, hit 114 off 48 deliveries, and guided Mumbai Indians to a nine-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in the city on Wednesday night. After opting to bowl, Mumbai Indians restricted Chennai Super Kings to 156 for the loss of six wickets, made possible only by some rearguard action from Subramaniam Badrinath (53) and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (43 not out).

While the crowd rooting for Tendulkar (12), who made his debut in the IPL after missing seven matches, it was Jayasuriya who settled into his typical mode, slamming 11 sixes and nine fours in his knock. Tendulkar did try to get into the thick of things but the rustiness showed. No bowler was spared by the Sri Lankan, but coming in for special treatment was Albie Morkel, who was slammed for a four and six by Jayasuriya in the second over and then for two sixes by Tendulkar and Jayasuriya in the fourth.

Manpreet Gony fared no better, Jayasuriya hitting three sixes off him in the fifth over in his typical style, over backward point, point and cover. The mayhem continued with Morkel, this time Jayasuriya hitting him for two sixes over deep backward square leg and slashing him for two fours on the off side.

Desperate for a breakthrough, Dhoni tossed the ball to hat-trick man Balaji in the seventh over and there was an immediate lull, only three runs coming from the over. The next over saw the first ray of hope for the Super Kings as Joginder Sharma stunned the Wankhede Stadium crowd into silence by castling Tendulkar.

However, with Jayasruriya in devastating form the end was predictable. That probably explained Dhoni's reluctance to bring in Muttiah Muralitharan, who came in late but to little effect. Jayasuriya finished off the match in a grand fashion, hitting 26 runs from the five deliveries from Chamara Kapugedera in the 13th over to give Mumbai Indians their fourth win in a row.

Earlier, a 95-run partnership between Dhoni and Badrinath helped Super Kings reach 156 after losing early wickets to be tottering at 46/4. Openers Vidyut Sivaramakrishnan and Stephen Fleming failed to capitalise on promising starts and Suresh Raina and the promoted Kapugedera departed without bothering the scorers.

Vidyut struck form early, hitting Ashish Nehra for three fours in the second over before slashing Pollock towards mid-off for Rohan Raje to take a well-judged catch. The same over had Fleming surviving a dropped chance by Jayasuriya. After Raina departed for one, edging Dwayne Bravo to Yogesh Takwale, Fleming kept the momentum going, slamming fours off Kulkarni and Bravo before he returned to pavillion, played on to Kulkarni.

Kapugedera went without opening his account and the onus was on Dhoni and Badrinath to stem the rot, which they did, but not to the extent that the total could pose a challenge to the home team. The two also waited a bit, breaking free only in the 18th over, as Badrinath hit Raje for a four and six. The next over saw Dhoni hoisting Bravo for a six before Badrinath reached his half century in style, hitting a six off the backfoot from a full toss delivery.

However, Bravo had the last laugh, coming off with a super acrobatic effort off his own bowling to dismiss Badrinath. Dhoni and new batsman Morkel had a boundary each from Kulkarni's last over before Morkel was caught by Uthappa trying to play Dhaval Kulkarni over long-off. (IANS)

Markets trading cautiously in green zone

The Indian equities market bounced back on Tuesday mirroring favourable global markets cues, but remained cautious as the initial trade progressed. Realty, metals, consumer durables and capital goods were once again in demand at initial trade.

The 30-share benchmark sensitive index of the Bombay Stock Exchange opened with a gain of 104.68 points or 0.62 per cent at 17,008.03.

Nearly 20 minutes into initial trading, the Sensex was trading at 17,007.97 with a gain of 0.87 per cent. All major sectoral indices, barring FMCG, traded in the green zone.

Similarly, the S&P Nifty of the National Stock Exchange was trading at 5,049.20 with a gain of 40.60 points or 0.73 per cent. The market breadth was positive. On BSE, 1,499 shares advanced as compared to 372 that declined and 50 which remained unchanged.

Hindalco, Jaiprakash Associates, Reliance Infrastructure and DLF were the early gainers while ITC, Bharti Airtel, ONGC and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the losers in initial trade.(IANS)

Shoaib Akhtar scripts impressive win for Knight Riders

Shoaib Akhtar made an impressive debut as he spearheaded Kolkata Knight Riders' win over Delhi Daredevils by 23 runs in an important Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 match on Tuesday.

The controversial Pakistani fastbowler wrecked the Daredevils top order with his raw pace and picked up four for 11 from his three overs to wrap up their innings for 110 runs in 17.5 overs. Knight Riders, after winning the toss, were restricted to 133 for the loss of six wickets in 20 overs at the Eden Gardens.

With the win, Knight Riders consolidated their position in the IPL as they have five wins from nine matches and are at fourth spot. Daredevils are still in the fifth place.

Daredevils batsmen failed to complement the fine job of their bowlers and couldn't chase the small total. They found Akhtar's pace too hot to handle. The 32-year-old tearway looked as fit as a fiddle and removed Virender Sehwag (10), Gautam Gambhir (0), Abraham de Villiers (7) and Manoj Tewari (9) to put Delhi on the backfoot. He was also adjudged the Man of the Match. Laxmi Ratan Shukla (3/6) and Ashoke Dinda (1/29), coupled with some fine fielding, then wrapped up the tail to make Akhtar's debut a memorable affair.

Daredevils' batsmen paid a huge price in their attempt to go after Akhtar, who bowled full throttle. Amit Mishra (31) and Tillekaratne Dilshan (25) tried to turn around things for the Delhi team but some brilliant efforts by Shukla called an end to their innings.

Shukla first effected a brilliant direct throw to get rid of Dilshan and then in the second ball of his first over he picked up Mishra. The allrounder just bowled five deliveries in the 18th over, which was also his first over, and scalped three wickets in four balls to wrap up the tail.

Earlier in the day, Knight Riders batsmen failed to break the shackles put by the Daredevils' pace battery and posted only 133 on a good batting pitch. Opener Salman Butt was the top scorer with 48 while David Hussey made 31.

The match was important as the winning team would have strengthened their claim for a semi-final berth. Knight Riders opted to bat first, backing their formidable bowling which was bolstered by Akhtar, who made his IPL debut after his five-year ban was suspended for one month. He came in place of Umar Gul.

For the Daredevils, Glenn McGrath was miserly with the new ball and Pradeep Sangwan also didn't offer too many loose balls as Kolkata struggled to inject momentum to their batting. (IANS)

Markets trading cautiously in green zone

The Indian equities market bounced back on Tuesday mirroring favourable global markets cues, but remained cautious as the initial trade progressed. Realty, metals, consumer durables and capital goods were once again in demand at initial trade.

The 30-share benchmark sensitive index of the Bombay Stock Exchange opened with a gain of 104.68 points or 0.62 per cent at 17,008.03.

Nearly 20 minutes into initial trading, the Sensex was trading at 17,007.97 with a gain of 0.87 per cent. All major sectoral indices, barring FMCG, traded in the green zone.

Similarly, the S&P Nifty of the National Stock Exchange was trading at 5,049.20 with a gain of 40.60 points or 0.73 per cent. The market breadth was positive. On BSE, 1,499 shares advanced as compared to 372 that declined and 50 which remained unchanged.

Hindalco, Jaiprakash Associates, Reliance Infrastructure and DLF were the early gainers while ITC, Bharti Airtel, ONGC and Mahindra & Mahindra were among the losers in initial trade.(IANS)

Fit-again Tendulkar to make IPL debut against Chennai

Mumbai Indians' hopes got a big shot in the arm when their icon player and captain Sachin Tendulkar on Monday declared himself fully fit to play his first Indian Premier League match against Chennai Super Kings at Wankhede stadium here on May 14. "Yes I will be playing the match on May 14. I feel very comfortable. It has been tough and disappointing to have missed the two tests against South Africa and the first seven IPL ties," Tendulkar told reporters after a strenuous practice sessions under lights.

Tendulkar has not played a competitive match since March-end due to a groin injury. He said that though ace South African all-rounder Shaun Pollock had done a commendable job as captain, resurrecting the team's fortunes after a string of defeats in the first four matches, he would take over the reins now that he is fit.

"Shaun Pollock was the makeshift captain and has done a terrific job but I will be captaining the side," Tendulkar said. He will open the innings with Sri Lankan ace Sanath Jayasuriya for the Mumbai Indians against Chennai, Tendulkar said.

The batsman, however, refused to be drawn into comments over off-spinner Harbhajan Singh who has been banned from the IPL for slapping S Sreesanth after the Mumbai Indians match against Punjab Kings XI at Mohali. "It is a past chapter. Let's put it behind and look ahead," Tendulkar said. (PTI)

Kings XI inflict 9 wicket defeat to Royal Challengers

Bangalore Royal Challengers slumped to a humiliating nine-wicket loss against Kings XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League (IPL) Twenty20 match on Monday. Riding on an unbeaten 74 from Shaun Marsh, Kings XI achieved the target of 144 in just 15.4 overs by losing the wicket of James Hopes (27). Luke Pomersbach was not out on 34 to compliment the brilliant efforts of his team's bowlers who wrapped up the Royal Challengers for 143 for the loss of eight in 20 overs. Shaun was also elected as the Man of the Match.

With the loss, troubles don't seem to end for the Royal Challengers, who are plagued by off-field controversies, and now it seems that the bottom-placed side is all but out of the semi-finals. The Mohali team after their sixth win from nine matches are placed second. The pressure was clearly on the Royal Challengers as they were desperately looking for a win. Their batting crumbled and Kings XI pacers made the best of the little assistance they got from the pitch.

Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan swung the ball both ways and were too hot to be handled by the Bangalore batsmen. Sreesanth did most of the damage, picking up three for 29 from his four overs and also accounted for the important wicket of Pakistani Misbah-ul-Haq (21). Sreesanth also gave the home team the first breakthrough by picking up Arun Kumar in the first ball of the second over and Mahela Jayawardene completing a straightforward catch at first slip.

Misbah, who replaced Shivnarine Chanderpaul, showed some flashes of brilliance and with Virat Kohli (21) looked to give the beleagured Royal Challengers a good start after the opening set-back. The Pakistani launched into Sreesanth, but the bowler had the last laugh after Misbah trodded onto his stumps while pushing a delivery to the off side, and departed for a entertaining eight-ball innings 21.

Yuvraj Singh played a gamble by bring on leg-spinner Piyush Chawla in the last over. Chawla initially proved costly after Kohli hit him for two fours. But a straighter delivery from Chawla kept a bit low and rattled Kohli's stumps.

Cameron White (10) and Dravid (29) struggled to keep up with the pace and surrendered without a fight-back. Chawla picked up his second wicket when White attempted to heave the leg-spinner over mid-wicket but a top-edge saw Chawla taking a splendid catch. Dravid also perished and failed to improvise himself in the crunch situtation, which has now given his crictics much fodder. A few big hits by wicketkeeper Mark Boucher (39) helped the Bangalore team put 143 runs on board.

Kings XI never looked at unease while chasing the modest target of 144. Shaun played some beautiful shots and helped them romp home safely. His innings lasted 51 balls and he hit nine boundaries and a couple of sixes.

Shaun and James Hopes (27) gave the Mohali team a brilliant start by adding 42 runs for the first wicket in 6.2 overs. The opening partnership proved crucial in swinging the fate in Kings XI favour. Pomersbach then played a small cameo of 34 runs from 24 balls to complete the formalities. (IANS)