Poll India: 2004
Sonia Gandhi to assume CPP leadership today
New Delhi: Congress President Sonia Gandhi will be elected leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party (CPP) at the CPP meeting, which is to be held early in the day. The meeting had been held in abeyance, to allow winning Congress MPs to reach the capital after seeing their post electoral formalities through. The Congress has emerged as the single largest party in the Lok Sabha polls with a tally of 145 MPs.

Meanwhile, with senior Congress leader Manmohan Singh, categorically denying on Friday that he was in the race for the top post, the nomination of Sonia Gandhi as the next prime minister by her party seems to be almost a certainty. Poll partners like the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Jan Shakti Party, DMK, TRS and CPI (M) have already given a go-ahead for Sonia Gandhi being declared leader of the 'secular' alliance.

Increased security cover at Sonia's residence
New Delhi: With increasing possibility of Sonia Gandhi becoming the next Prime Minister, barricades were erected around her residence at 10, Janpath and the adjacent Congress headquarters.
Additional policemen were deployed on the Janpath and Akbar roads, curbing movement of traffic and pedestrians.

New front draws up Common Minimum Programme
New Delhi: A committee headed by Dr Manmohan Singh has got hold of the manifestoes of various parties, that are now slated to be part of the new expanded Congress led alliance, and has started the exercise of drawing up a 'common minimum programme' (CMP) in consultation with the coalition partners. The Left parties have decided to meet during the weekend through Monday to decide whether to support the coalition from outside or proactively participate in the new government.

DMK alliance to meet today
Chennai: The constituents of the DMK alliance in Tamil Nadu will hold a meeting in Chennai today. Karunanidhi has said his party would take a decision about joining the new government after consultations with its alliance partners - the MDMK, PMK, CPI (M), CPI and IUML The DMK and its allies swept the polls in Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, securing all 40 seats.
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Andhra: Free power on first day of assuming power
Hyderabad: The leader of the Congress Legislature Party in Andhra Pradesh, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy, was sworn in as the new Chief Minister by the state Governor, Surjit Singh Barnala, at the Lal Bahadur Stadium on Friday. In his first administrative decision, the Chief Minister has passed orders waiving the power tariff arrears of farmers and providing free supply of electricity to the agriculture sector. Dr Reddy has said that the one-time waiver of power tariff arrears would cost the State Exchequer Rs 1,192 crore.

On the other hand, the Transmission Commission of AP (AP Transco) would incur a loss of Rs 436 crore per annum on account of free supply of power to all farmers irrespective of the extent of their land holdings. The state government would compensate the loss incurred by AP Transco in this regard.
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Pharmexcil now a reality
Hyderabad: Pharmexcil, the dedicated export promotion council for the pharmaceutical industry, has become a reality with the Director General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) issuing the public notice creating the council with its headquarters located at Hyderabad. According to the DGFT notice, while the Pharmexcil would be headquartered at Hyderabad, the regional office would be located at Mumbai.

In a press release issued here on Friday, Pharmexcil said its offices were designated as the authorities to issue registration-cum-membership certificate to exporters of drugs and pharmaceuticals under the Exim policy. Dinesh B. Mody of JB Chemicals & Pharmaceuticals Ltd would act as the Chairman of the council while Venkat Jasti of Suven Life Sciences Ltd will assume responsibilities as the Vice-Chairman.
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Car sales up 32 per cent in April
New Delhi: Passenger car sales have grown by 32.4 per cent in the first month of the fiscal, with a total of 56,272 units being sold in April 2004 over 42,499 units in the same month last year, according to data released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM). Both Maruti Udyog and Tata Motors have seen a sizeable increase in sales in the month, growing at 48.4 per cent and 52.6 per cent respectively.

Two-wheeler sales grew by about 16.4 per cent to 4.41 lakh units during April, as sales of motorcycles and step-throughs posted a rise of 14.5 per cent to 3.48 lakh units. In the motorcycle and step-through category, India's biggest motorcycle maker Hero Honda posted a hefty 46 per cent rise at 1.92 lakh units while its nearest rival Bajaj Auto registered a rise of 22.5 per cent at 83,200 units. Scooter and scooterette sales registered a hefty growth of 28.3 per cent at 71,306 units during April, led largely by growing sales of Honda Motorcycle and Scooters India (HMSI) and TVS. Commercial vehicle sales went up by an impressive 66.8 per cent at 19,784 units in the review month over 11,855 units in April 2003.
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