A look at the headlines right now:

  1. Exit polls show clear win predicted for BJP in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Goa: Figures show a close call between the Congress and AAP in Punjab, while the Manipur winner remains unclear.
  2. Women in India will now get 26 weeks of maternity leave instead of just 12: The Lok Sabha approved an amendment Bill that makes it mandatory for companies with more than 50 employees to provide a day care centre near by.
  3. RBI will issue new Rs 10 notes with improved security features: The old notes will still be valid, the central bank has clarified.
  4. Pakistan has ‘illegally occupied’ our territory, India says at UNHRC: India’s permanent representative to the UN asked why the body was silent in a debate on Pakistan using ‘terrorism as an instrument of state policy’.
  5. EC says by-election in Tamil Nadu for Jayalalithaa’s seat will be held on April 12: Votes will be counted for the RK Nagar seat by-poll on April 17.
  6. Akhilesh Yadav hints at an alliance with BSP as exit polls project BJP victory: The chief minister told BBC Hindi that his Samajwadi Party might tie up with Mayawati ‘if the need arises.’
  7. No such thing as absolute privacy in America, says FBI Director James Comey: He said a judge has the right to compel anyone to testify about any private conversation one has with their spouses, clergy members, or attorneys.
  8. SBI to buy 11,000 pump action guns to guard its offices across country, reports Hindustan Times: The guns will be manufactured at Rifle Factory in Ishapore near Kolkata.
  9. Foreign NGOs face challenges in India, says US after Compassion International is forced to shut shop: A State Department spokesperson said obstacles hindering the functioning of charities in the country were a ‘matter of concern’.
  10. Publishers withdraw case against DU shop selling photocopies of textbooks: Students, who have been fighting for equal access to knowledge, said the move took them by surprise.