A clash broke out between police and participants at a Hanuman Jayanti rally in West Bengal's Birbhum district on Tuesday, police said.

The rally, brought out on the streets of the district headquarters Suri, with the participants carrying saffron flags, was stopped by police and Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel near the Barabagan area, sparking trouble.

Stating that permission for any such rallies had not been given, the district police said they were forced to intervene when the participants tried to enter the "sensitive areas of the town".

"We did not give them permission for any such rally in the area and asked them not to invite any political leaders. In spite of that, there was a rally. We did not initially object but had to intervene when they tried to enter the more sensitive areas of the town with a mixed population," Birbhum's Superintendent of Police N. Sudheer Kumar told IANS.

Police resorted to a baton charge to control the situation. A few rally participants were also held for alleged violence.

"Some people were detained as they did not listen to police and tried to assault our personnel. We had to forcefully stop them and ensure that the situation is under control," the officer said.

Accusing state Bharatiya Janata Party President Dilip Ghosh of inciting the rally organisers, district Trinamool Congress presdient Anubrata Mondal said the police action was correct and necessary.

"Dilip Ghosh was supposed to attend this rally. He did not come himself but tried to incite the locals from Kolkata. These tactics won't work in Birbhum," Mondal said.

"Police had no objections initially but asked the rally not to enter the Madrasa road. They did not listen to police. The rally was totally disorganised. I think what police has done is correct," he added.

Actress Jennifer Winget, who plays the role of Maya Mehrotra in the popular TV show Beyhadh, had a fallout with her on screen husband Kushal Tandon ‘s  character Arjun Sharma, is likely to reunite with him in the show.
 
In the previous episodes, it was seen that Arjun had discovered Maya’s dark side and is no more in love with his wife but Maya’s new trick has worked perfectly in her favour.
 
It was seen that Maya has falsely accused Arjun’s brother Ayaan for raping her to turn Arjun against his brother and to win back his trust. However, Arjun’s anger faded in front of Maya’s false misery and he decided to take revenge against his brother.
 
Arjun, was seen comforting Maya, he also expressed his love for her.

Will Arjun discover about Maya’s plan or will he fall in her trap? Well, only time can tell!

Dr A P J Abdul Kalam Technical University has released the UPSEE admit card 2017 on the official website www.upsee.nic.in. Candidates trying to get their UPSEE 2017 admit card have to visit the official website and fill the blank space with the required information including roll number, registration number, password and other required information to download their admit card.

UP State Entrance Examination is conducted under the guidance of Dr A P J Abdul Kalam Technical University and the UPSEE 2017 examination has been scheduled to take place on April 16, 22, and 23. 

Due to the huge number of visitors on the UPSEE official website candidates may face technical issues in getting their admit card. So the candidates are advised to stay calm and refresh the official website in a short interval of time to download their UPSEE admit card.

Candidates facing any unsolved problem may directly get in touch with the officials over helpline number 18001800161 or drop may get in touch via mail at helpdeskupsee17@gmail.com. 

UPSEE candidates are advised to get the print out of the admit card/hall ticket and carry it at the time of examination or else candidates would not be allowed to enter the examination hall.

With India's tallest flag on the Indo-Pak border in Amritsar getting frequently damaged due to its height and weight, Punjab government will now take a call if it is feasible to continue furling the tricolour there or not.

The flag – weighting 100-kilogram and hoisted on 105-metre high flagpole at the Attari border — is supposed to be visible from Lahore as the place is just a few kilometers away from Pakistan.

But since its inauguration on 5 March, the flag – 36 metres in length and 24 metres wide – was damaged five times. One such flag costs Rs 1.25 lakh.

The deputy commissioner (DC) Amritsar, Kamaldeep Singh Sangha said the flag is not being hoisted anymore but as it is a matter of national pride, the government needs to take a call whether the flag could be hoisted at its present height or not.

"I have written to the additional chief secretary (ACS), ACS (local bodies) and director general of police to take a call in the matter. As the flag is repeatedly getting damaged due to its height and material, it needs to be ascertained by a committee of experts if this project is feasible or not," he said.

Sangha said as large number of tourists, domestic and foreign, visit Attari border, the frequent damage to the flag is a serious issue as it is related to national prestige.

Built at an approximate cost of Rs 3.50 crore, the post was a project of Punjab government's Amritsar Improvement Trust (AIT) Authority. Now the AIT has suggested the use of smaller sized flag (72 feet long and 48 feet wide) instead of 120 feet long and 80 feet wide flag, but the DC said given the height and high velocity winds, there is no guarantee if a smaller sized flag would sustain. "A committee of experts needs to examine this issue and give its opinion on the feasibility of this project," Sangha said.

Claudio Ranieri put to rest the notion that Leicester City players cost him his job as manager of the reigning English Premier League (EPL) champions.

"I don't believe rumours the players spoke to the Leicester owners about sacking me," Ranieri told Sky Sports.

"The players got to experience something totally different. In pre-season they played against big teams, went all over the world. I don't believe the players killed me," Ranieri said, speaking for the first time since being sacked nine months after he led Leicester to a highly improbable league triumph last season.

Leicester struggled during the early stages of the season and were just one point above the relegation zone when Ranieri was removed as manager. Leicester have been in superb form since Ranieri's sacking under new manager Craig Shakespeare, winning six games on the bounce. 

Ranieri, however, asserted that the players did not conspire to remove him as manager although he did admit that someone else within the club could be responsible.

"I listened to a lot of stories about this. Maybe it could be someone behind me, but maybe the little problem I had before the title, maybe they push a little more when we lose this year," the 65-year-old Italian said.

"I don't want to tell. I am a serious man, a loyal man. What I have to say, I say face-to-face."

Reflecting on his sacking, he said: "Of course, it wasn't easy, because I knew that the second year was totally different. When you have won the title, the players have to understand what happened, to reset their minds, because it's not easy, and we were not a team that was used to fighting for the title, we were a little team and then 'explosion,' we won the title."

"Then we had to stay calm. I believe that sooner or later we would turn. The turning point was the Sevilla match. In the second half everyone was together again, fighting, Jamie scoring. We made very good matches before that but not with the same consistency of the year before, that was the problem," he added.

"To go to Sevilla, the team who won the Europa League three times in a row, it's not easy to go there and (only) lose 2-1, so when I was sacked it was a shock for me and for everyone."

Ruling out any legal hurdle in building the Ram temple at the disputed site in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya town, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) on Tuesday caleld for enactment of a law to facilitate the construction.

"There is a provision where joint session of Parliament is called and bills are passed. I don't think there is any legal hurdle. We have all faith in the present government… There can be a bill on Ram Mandir. It is their commitment also," said Surendra Kumar Jain, VHP's International Joint General Secretary.

Addressing the media here, Jain said: "Ayodhya is in Uttar Pradesh and Yogi (Chief Minister Adityanath) is there, who soon after his oath-taking said that building Ram temple is the mission of his life and 'I will fulfil it at any cost'. I think Modi and Yogi will very soon realise that dream."

On the Supreme Court's recent suggestion for an out-of-court settlement through dialogue, he said the three top institutions of the Muslim community had ruled out any dialogue.

"You need two people to talk. When one person talks to oneself, you can understand what that means. When the apex court said it, immediately the three pillars of Muslim society — Muslim Personal Law Board, Sunni Waqf Board and Babri Masjid Action Committee — said 'no dialogue'."

"…when it comes to triple Talaq, they say the court should not interfere, but when it comes to Ram Janmabhoomi, they say court should decide… What a joke," he said.

"Ultimately, the ball lies in the court of Parliament," he said referring to the VHP's stand on building the temple in Ayodhya similar to the Somnath temple.

Despite assurances from Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan that no fuel surcharge will be imposed on purchase of petrol and diesel through credit and debit cards, customers are being levied a charge of up to 2.5 per cent for filling fuel at retail outlets. Most banks started imposing charges on petrol pump outlets even before 1 April.

On 9 January, Pradhan said “MDR (merchant discount rates) on card payments for fuel purchase will not be passed on to customers. Oil companies and banks are currently in discussions to determine who will bear MDR charges.”

To promote cashless transactions post demonetisation, the Central government had waived the MDR on fuel purchases for consumers. All India Petroleum Dealers Association President Ajay Bansal told The Statesman, “We have clear cut instructions that consumers should not be charged for filling fuel through cards. If banks are charging customers then it is absolutely wrong and action should be taken by the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Petroleum.” He added that if this continues it will hurt the government's digital payment initiative.

In order to check the veracity of the initial reports, this reporter filled petrol worth Rs 500 from Navyug Service Station petrol pump outlet of BPCL in New Delhi and was charged a surcharge of Rs 14.37. However, he also received a discount of Rs 3.75 as part of the government initiative. The Centre announced a discount of 0.75 per cent on fuel purchases made using digital payment.

Since petrol pumps claim that their margins are so thin that they can’t pay for the transaction, the petroleum ministry earlier decided that the charges will be borne between the oil marketing companies and the banks. However, since this arrangement did not work out and OMCs refused to bear the charges, the banks have started imposing these charges on the consumers.

Punjab is all set to take a major leap in industrialisation, with leading captains of Indian industry on Tuesday offering a slew of investments and project initiatives in the state during separate meetings with Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh on the second day of his Mumbai visit.

While Reliance ADAG, headed by Anil Ambani, sought from the CM land for setting up testing ranges for its new defence projects, RPG Group Chairman Harsh Goenka evinced interest in setting up a tractor tyre plant in the state.

CM invited them to explore the viability of the projects, extending his government’s full support for the same by

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has recorded a two-minute prologue for a TV show, in which he has dwelled upon women's safety. However, he says it's a shame that one has to rely on various mediums and campaigns to raise awareness about the issue.

"And I step out somewhat tentatively across the lawn to the precincts of the space that is often referred to as my office and crash right into the routine of a recording to be done for a serial that is being made by a channel," Amitabh posted on his blog.

"The recording is just the two-minute prologue on the essence of the programme — its message though is in similarity to the effort first out of the block,Pink; its sentiment, its message and its most stark and powerful issue — the safety of our women," he added.

The 74-year-old did not divulge details about the show, but he further wrote: "Is it not a shame though, that what should come to us humans as a natural reaction to protect the female gender in our society, one and many ones, have to propagate the issue through various mediums and campaigns! A shame."

Amitabh then raised concern about rape victims, who go through "humiliating questioning to prove the credential for the actuality of the crime".

"We are worse than the ugly rapist then for asking or subjecting the women to such questions. Why did you go out so late in the night, leaving your home? What kind of clothes were you wearing, when you went out? Can you give us some more exact and finer details, as to who did what?"

"Embarrassing the woman, and repeatedly keep getting her to feel that she indeed was at fault. Sad," added the actor, whose film Pink has just won the National Award for Best Film on Social Issues.
 

Mission Indradhanush to infuse capital in public sector banks is not the last step as far as their recapitalisation is concerned, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said on Tuesday, asserting that the government was fully supporting them.

Replying to questions on the grave concern expressed by the opposition over the growing non-performing assets (NPAs) in these banks, he said the government was making all efforts to ensure that the health of the banking sector improves and the banks are repaid.

He, however, said that the NPA problem related to some big accounts, which are not unduly large in numerical terms, and people have to realise that banks have to be paid back.

“There are 20 to 30 large accounts where people have to realise that banks have to be repaid. If the current promoters are not in a position to repay back, then they have to develop alternate corporate strategies so that the companies pay back,” he told the members.

“The government will fully support the public sector banks because it believes they have a very important role to play.

“The Indradhanush plan which envisages Rs.70,000 crore being given from the central budget is not the last step as far as recapitalisation is concerned,” he told the members during the Question Hour.

Jaitley said the assessment was that the public sector banks would require about Rs 1.8 lakh crore of capital to be infused in them.
“As part of the Indradhanush scheme, the government, from the budgetary resources, had decided to infuse Rs 70,000 crore.

“This means Rs.25,000 crore each in the first two years and Rs. 10,000 crore this year and another Rs.10,000 crore the next year. The Rs.70,000 crore is to be infused in a phased period of time from the budget,” he said.

Jaitley, however, noted that the problem of NPAs was due to some people not paying up the banks for the loans taken and the burden comes on to the taxpayer.

“As far as the action plan is concerned, several actions have been taken. These include empowering the banks by statutory changes, all laws have been amended and the Reserve Bank has come out with various schemes from time to time.

“There are some other steps which are now being contemplated,” he added.

Jaitley said the government believes the public sector banks have a very important role to play in supporting a large number of social programmes and extending the reach of banking and supporting infrastructure in the country.

He said once the market conditions with regard to the valuation of these banks improves, then the bank shares itself will be used for their further capitalisation.

He also noted that banks as lenders and creditors have to act in larger public interest and ensure that the economy and growth itself is supported, he said, adding that whatever arrangement with loans are made, these have to be on a commercial basis.

In his written reply, Jaitley said, “For resolution of stressed assets, RBI has introduced a number of tools such as Corporate Debt Restructuring (CDR), Strategic Debt Restructuring Scheme (SDR) and Scheme for Sustainable Debt Stressed Assets (S4A)”.

He also said “the government has carried out the exercise of capitalisation of public sector banks to conform with regulatory capital norms as well as for driving credit growth to cater to the needs of a growing economy.”

Earlier, Minister of State for Finance Santosh Gangwar said the new S4A scheme of RBI was launched in July 2016 and its results will come soon. “It is a new scheme and will bear good results,” he added.

Around 3.5 per cent of children between the ages of 11 and 14 years, and 13.5 per cent between the ages of 15 and 16 years were dropouts, while over 25 per cent of children in Grades I to VIII were absent from school on the day a team visited the school.

These are the findings of the 2016 Annual States of Education Report (ASER) survey of schooling and learning levels in rural India. The survey included over 560,000 children between three and 16 years, in 589 districts of India.

India's almost universal enrollment in school hides these two major challenges of school education — high dropout and low school attendance. Children dropping out or not attending school, has consequences: It results in loss in productivity of the education system as a high dropout rate increases per unit cost of school education, and reduces human resource development. Dropouts are likely to be in semi-skilled and unskilled employment, according to a 2011 study by the National University of Educational Planning and Administration.

In the policy context, for the present government's "Skill India" and "Make in India" programmes to see even a modicum of success, it would have to address these two issues related to school education.

Enrollment in school does not necessarily translate into attendance. At the all-India level, only about three-fourths of enrolled children attended primary (Grade I to Grade IV/V) or upper primary school (Grade V to Grade VII/VIII) on the day an ASER team visited the school in 2016.

The problem of students dropping out, and absenteeism, is particularly acute in the less-developed states of Bihar, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh that together have over 51 million children, or 46 per cent of India's total child population between the ages of 11 and 16 years, according to Census data. This story also considers, Uttarakhand, Chhatisgarh, and Jharkhand states carved out of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Bihar, respectively.

Though the reason cited for dropouts in secondary schools is often access (such as "school is far", especially for girls), evidence shows that one of the most important reasons for dropping out is "lack of interest", according to the ASER Centre's Middle School Study, conducted in Nalanda district in Bihar and Satara in Maharashtra, between 2013 and 2015.

A higher proportion of children in the age group 11-16 years who dropped out of school between 2015 and 2016 lacked basic reading and arithmetic skills, as compared to children who continued to be enrolled in school in 2016.

It is possible that many students' knowledge level is much below grade level, but that teachers teach students only at grade level, as one study from 2017 suggests. If children are being left behind in school and if no one in school engages with them at their level of knowledge, they might drop out.

Though data on absenteeism are difficult to collect, and the relationship between learning and absenteeism is not verified empirically, it is reasonable to expect that those who attend school regularly have better learning outcomes than their peers who do not.

Only 3.1 per cent children in the age group 6-14 years were out of school, according to the 2016 ASER report, but there were variations in out-of-school children depending on the age group. ASER, a household survey, captures the enrollment status of all children, including out-of-school children, who have dropped out or never been to school.

While only 1.7 per cent of children in the age group 6-10 years — who would have been in primary school — were out of school, a higher proportion (4.6 per cent) of children in the age group 11-14 years, who should have been in upper primary grades, were out of school.

Dropouts are a bigger problem than children who never enroll in school. While 1.1 per cent of children between the ages of 11 and 14 years never enrolled in school, 3.5 per cent were dropouts, the ASER 2016 survey found.

In the age group 11-14 years, Uttar Pradesh (6.3 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (5.8 per cent) and Rajasthan (5 per cent) have dropouts higher than most other states. The proportion of dropout children in Chhattisgarh (4 per cent) and Jharkhand (3.7 per cent) is also above the all-India average of 3.5 per cent.

At the all-India level, the proportion of dropouts has remained stable — it decreased from 3.9 per cent in 2012 to 3.5 per cent in 2016. In contrast, 5.8 per cent of sampled children in Madhya Pradesh were dropouts, according to ASER 2016, an increase from 3.7 percentage points in 2010 — the only state to see an increase in dropouts.

As many as 15.3 per cent of children aged 15-16 years were out of school, compared to 4.6 per cent of 11-14 years old children. Majority of out-of-school children in the age group 15-16 years (13.5 per cent) were dropouts, according to ASER 2016 survey.

Across India, Madhya Pradesh had the highest proportion of children in ages 15-16 years (23.6 per cent), who were dropouts. Uttar Pradesh (18.7 per cent), Chhattisgarh (17.5 per cent) and Rajasthan (16.5 per cent) are among the top five states with the highest proportion of dropouts in the age group 15-16 years.

Gujarat, an economically advanced state, has the second highest proportion of dropouts in India — 19.3 per cent — for reasons that are unclear at this point.

Across India, the proportion of dropout children in the age group 15-16 years declined from 14.1 per cent in 2012 to 13.5 per cent, according to 2016 ASER data. For instance, dropouts in the states of Bihar and Jharkhand increased between 2010 and 2014, but declined in 2016. In the other states, no trend is discernible.

The proportion of dropouts in Madhya Pradesh, on the other hand, has steadily increased from 11.6 per cent in 2010 to 23.6 per cent in 2016. Reasons behind the varying trends are difficult to understand, and we need further studies to understand the pattern of dropouts across states.

Girls in the age group 11-16 years in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan are more likely to drop out of school as compared to boys. In Madhya Pradesh, 28 per cent of girls in the age group 15-16 years were dropouts, compared to 19.4 per cent of boys. In Gujarat, 22.5 per cent of girls were dropouts compared to 16.3 per cent of boys.

In Bihar, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand, boys in the age group 15-16 years were more likely to drop out of school than girls. The reasons for differential gender trends across states is not clear and needs further research.

In its attempt to enhance ease of doing business, the Income-Tax department has joined hands with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) to issue Permanent Account Number (PAN) and Tax Deduction Account Number (TAN) for newly incorporated companies in a single day. As many as 19,704 companies were allotted PAN in this manner till 31 March 2017.

“Applicant companies submit a common application form SPICe (INC 32) on the MCA portal and once the data of incorporation is sent to the Central Board of Direct Taxes by MCA, the PAN and TAN are issued immediately without any further intervention from the applicant,” the Finance Ministry said on Tuesday.

During March 2017, of the 10,894 newly incorporated companies, PAN was allotted within 4 hours in 95.63 per cent cases and within a single day in all cases. Similarly, TAN was allotted to all such companies within one day in 99.73 per cent cases.

The CBDT has also introduced the Electronic PAN Card (E-PAN) which is sent by e-mail, in addition to issue of the physical PAN Card, to all applicants including individuals where PAN is allotted.

The move is expected to significantly improve India’s ranking in the Ease of Doing Business Study of the World Bank by reducing the number of processes of registration for companies as well as making it simpler to set up businesses, the statement said.

The CBI has registered a preliminary enquiry against Delhi Health Minister Satyendar Jain to inquire into allegations of money laundering against him.

It is alleged that Jain was involved in money laundering to the tune of Rs.4.63 crore while being a public servant during 2015-16 through Prayas Info Solutions private limited, Akinchand developers private limited and Managalyatan projects private limited.

The allegations against Jain also include purported money laundering to the tune of Rs.11.78 crore during 2010-12 through these companies and Indometal Impex pvt limited.

The matter was referred to the CBI by Income Tax Department against the new Benami Transactions Prohibitions Act.

She fulfills the dream of plain Jane with the simple next door girl look with no make-up. Sometimes, she reaches out to the Indian at heart as she wears the minimalistic Indian look with a small bindi. At other times, she pumps in a new high of adrenaline with a sporty look. Then, she springs a delight with a simple yet stylish look and thrills the world in her rock star avatar. Then her hair is all let loose or styled up, setting a new fashion inspiration for the gen-next.

Well, actor Shraddha Kapoor is set to thrill her fans with her next big release Half Girlfriend, in which she flaunts different avatar, setting new style quotient.

In the new film set to release on 19 May, Shraddha essays the role of a popular rock star and is seen singing and performing as a rock star. She, however, is also seen wearing a long kimono styled with black shorts and brown hat to compliment the look.

In another performance, Shraddha is seen wearing a ball gown with a violin in her hand and a stylish hairdo. She is also seen tying a high bun with a choker in her neck n a pretty dress.

The trailer of Half Girlfriend was released on Monday and it received a tremendous response. Based on Chetan Bhagat’s novel Half Girlfriend, the film also stars Arjun Kapoor in a pivotal role.

The G7 group of nations has failed to reach an agreement over threatening new sanctions against Russia and Syria over last week's chemical attack.

The group was seeking a common position on the Syrian conflict, before US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson flies to Russia later on Tuesday to try to persuade it to abandon its Syrian ally, BBC reported.

The G7 nations during a meeting in the Italian city of Lucca agreed there was no solution to the Syria crisis with President Assad in power.

Sanctions against Russia and Syria will not be put in place until after an investigation into last week's apparent chemical attack, British government sources said.

Syria denied it carried out any chemical attack on the rebel-held town of Khan Sheikhoun last week that left at least 89 people dead.

Members of the G7 group of leading industrialised nations agreed to delay implementing sanctions until there was "hard and irrefutable evidence" over the alleged chemical attack, said the report.

The meeting brought together Foreign Ministers from the US, Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan.

Italian Foreign Minister Angelino Alfano said the G7 had broadened consultations in Italy on Tuesday morning, with key regional allies, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar and Turkey.

He declared the talks "a political success".

Keeping aside weak Asian and European markets, domestic benchmark indices snapped three-session losing streak and closed Tuesday’s trading session with jumps.

The Sensex at the BSE closed 213 points or 0.72 per cent higher at 29,788 while the NSE Nifty ended 56 points or 0.61 per cent up at 9,237.

Broader markets outperformed the key benchmark indices. BSE Midcap and Smallcap indices jumped 0.4 per cent and 1 per cent respectively.

Among the BSE sectoral indices, FMCG index closed with the biggest jump, up 1.6 per cent. Capital Goods (up 1.5 per cent), Realty (up 1.3 per cent) and Bankex (up 1 per cent) indices were other notable gainers. Metal Index slumped 1.6 per cent.

On Monday, the BSE Sensex closed 130 points or 0.44 per cent down at 29,576, while the NSE Nifty ended 17 points or 0.18 per cent lower at 9,181.

Top gainers in the Sensex-30 pack: ITC (up 3.2 per cent), Power Grid (up 2.2 per cent), ICICI Bank (up 1.9 per cent), L&T (up 1.8 per cent) and SBI (up 1.6 per cent).

Top losers in the Sensex-30 pack: Adani Ports (down 4.8 per cent), Cipla (down 1.7 per cent), Tata Steel (down 1.4 per cent), Bajaj Auto (down 0.5 per cent) and Reliance Industries (down 0.5 per cent).

Meanwhile, the Rupee closed nine paise higher at 64.47 against the US Dollar.

Somalia security forces have rescued an Indian cargo ship hijacked by Somali pirates on April 1 but nine of the 11 crew members are missing, a maritime official said on Tuesday.

John Steed, the regional manager of not for profit group Oceans Beyond Piracy, said the hostages are believed to be held between the vicinity of Hobyo and Haradhere in central Somalia.

"The Indian ship was released by Somalia security forces on Monday night but nine of the 11 crew members are missing, having been taken ashore by the pirates. The vessel is sailing away," Steed told Xinhua by telephone.

The pirating of the Indian dhow came after the fuel tanker, Aris 13, was held for four days by armed pirates. The Indian ship, Al Kausar, was one of three foreign vessels to be hijacked after a five-year lull.

"We haven't established where the hostages were taken," said Steed, noting that Somali pirates were holding 17 hostages from Iran and India.

"The pirates are holding 17 hostages at the moment. Eight are Iranians while nine are Indians," he said, adding that efforts were on to secure their release.

Al Kausar was chartered by a Somali businessman and was carrying commercial goods. 

The vessel, which was en route from Dubai to Bosasso in Somalia, was hijacked in the vicinity of Socotra (Island).

The release of the Indian vessel comes after sailors from Indian and Chinese Navies on Sunday freed a Tuvalu-registered vessel which had been boarded by pirates. The vessel had 19 crew members.

Somali pirates tend to be well armed with automatic weapons and rocket propelled grenade (RPG) and sometimes use skiffs launched from mother vessels, which may be hijacked fishing vessels or dhows, to conduct attacks far from the Somali coast.

Maritime experts said lack of economic opportunities and the prevalence of illegal fishing were pushing more Somalis to turn to piracy.