HIGHLIGHTS

Following are the top stories at 1 pm: NATION DEL88 ELECTIONS-LD CONG MANIFESTO ****Cong promises to raise 50 pc cap on quotas, right to apprenticeship in manifesto New Delhi: Right to apprenticeship, a legal guarantee for MSP, and passing a constitutional amendment to raise the 50 per cent cap on reservations for SCs, STs and OBCs are among the promises made by the Congress in its manifesto for the Lok Sabha polls released on Friday.**** DEL29 BIZ-RBI ****RBI holds repo rate at 6.5 pc for 7th consecutive time Mumbai: The Reserve Bank of India on Friday decided to keep policy rate unchanged for the seventh time in a row and said that it remains vigilant towards upside risks to food inflation.**** DEL90 ELECTIONS-CONG MANIFESTO RAHUL INDIA bloc fighting ideological election, decision on PM candidate after polls: Rahul New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said the Lok Sabha polls are between forces who are trying to destroy the Constitution and democracy and those protecting them.**** DEL77 BIZ-RBI-LD INFLATION ****Food price uncertainties to weigh on inflation trajectory, RBI retains FY'25 forecast at 4.5 pc Mumbai: The Reserve Bank on Friday said food price uncertainties continue to weigh on the inflation trajectory going forward, even as it retained 4.5 per cent retail inflation projection for the current fiscal.**** DEL37 BIZ-RBI-GROWTH ****RBI retains 7 pc growth forecast for FY25 Mumbai: The Reserve Bank on Friday retained GDP growth forecast of 7 per cent for 2024-25 financial year, lower than the 7.6 per cent expansion estimated for FY24.**** DEL64 ELECTIONS-EC-ATISHI ****EC notice to Atishi over statement on BJP's 'poaching' bid New Delhi: The Election Commission Friday issued a show-cause notice to Delhi minister and AAP leader Atishi, asking her to back with facts her statement that the BJP approached her to join the party.**** DEL4 CONG-GOVT-COVID ****Modi govt was 'dragged into' providing free COVID-19 vaccinations by oppn: Cong New Delhi: The Congress on Friday claimed that the Modi government was ''dragged into'' providing free COVID-19 vaccinations on the insistence of the opposition and the Supreme Court, and said it is hard to forget the ''extent of the mismanagement'' that occurred during the pandemic.**** CAL4 AS-BORAH-DEFAMATION ****Assam Cong chief files Rs 10 crore defamation suit against Himanta Guwahati: Assam Congress president Bhupen Kumar Borah has filed a Rs 10 crore defamation suit against Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma at a local court here, claiming that various statements made by the BJP leader have damaged his public image and the party.**** MDS4 KL-THE KERALA STORY-CONGRESS ****The Kerala Story: Congress approaches ECI against telecasting of movie by Doordarshan Thiruvananthapuram: The Congress in Kerala on Friday approached the Election Commission of India (ECI) against the decision of Doordarshan to telecast the controversial movie 'The Kerala Story', saying it was a ''tacit effort'' to divide society on religious grounds to further the electoral prospects of the ruling BJP.**** LEGAL LGD5 SC-ABBAS ANSARI ****SC notice to UP over MLA Abbas Ansari's plea for nod to attend 'fatiha' for deceased father New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought a response from the Uttar Pradesh government on a plea by MLA Abbas Ansari, who is lodged in jail, seeking permission to attend fatiha or special prayers on April 10 following the death of his father Mukhtar Ansari.**** LGD4 SC-FOOTBALL-MENTIONING ****SC to consider listing pleas relating to All India Football Federation New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to consider listing the pleas relating to the All India Football Federation and finalisation of its constitution which was framed by former apex court judge Justice L Nageswara Rao.**** LGD3 SC-SUFI SAINT-BURIAL ****SC dismisses plea to transport mortal remains of Sufi saint from Bangladesh to India New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a plea seeking transportation of the mortal remains of Sufi saint Hazrat Shah Muhammad Abdul Muqtadir Shah Masood Ahmad from Bangladesh to India.**** FOREIGN FGN16 PAK-IMRAN-BUSHRA-DOCTOR ****No evidence of Bushra Bibi being poisoned, says personal physician Islamabad: Imran Khan's wife Bushra Bibi has not been given any poisonous substance, her personal physician has said following a medical checkup after allegations by the ex-prime minister that the former first lady was poisoned while incarcerated at his private residence which was turned into a sub-jail.**** FGN14 PAK-SENATE-GILANI ****Pakistan Peoples Party nominates former PM Gilani for Senate chairman Islamabad: Former Pakistan prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani has been nominated by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) as its candidate for the coveted post of Senate chairman as part of the power-sharing agreement between his party and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), according to a media report on Friday.**** FGN12 RUSSIA-UKRAINE WAR-POWER PLANTS ****Russia renews big attacks on Ukrainian power grid using better intelligence and new tactics Moscow: When the Russian barrage hit the Ukrainian power plant, a worker named Taras was manning the control panel — a crucial task that required him to stay as the air-raid siren blared and his colleagues ran for safety.