Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington to renew the US-Israel ties after eight strained years during the Obama administration.

The Israeli leader and President Donald Trump could both use a boost when they meet on Wednesday, CNN reported.

Though both men have declared their mutual support and outlined similar views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the realities of the region and entrenched positions on all sides are likely to intrude on the relationship at some point.

"It's going to be an absolute love fest," said Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute, speaking of the meeting.

"They both know the likelihood is that in the long run there will be tensions and an argument," he said, given that Trump had indicated he wanted to tackle a Middle East peace agreement and has sent conflicting signals on Israel, according to the report.

"But for now, there are no major issues between them. It's going to be a honeymoon," he said.

The President was also considering helping Israel attempt to normalise its relations with Sunni Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, according to the report.

Netanyahu had a tense and at times bitter relationship with former President Barack Obama. Now, he is looking to bolster his perch as Israel's steward of the relationship with Washington, in part to defend himself against challenges from right-wing members of his party.

CNN quoted a source as saying that the White House was still figuring out what its policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be. "I think they don't know yet," the source said.

Regarding the concept of the two-state solution to the conflict, a bedrock of current US policy, a senior US official said, "Maybe, maybe not. It's something the two sides have to agree to. It's not for us to impose that vision."

The Trump-Netanyahu meeting at the White House will cover Iran, Syria, ISIS and the two countries' ties, said White House spokesman Sean Spicer.

He also said the two leaders will discuss the prospects for Middle East peace, an effort that Trump has said he wants his son-in-law Jared Kushner to lead.

The "administration will work to achieve comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so that Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and security," Spicer said on Tuesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in Washington to renew the US-Israel ties after eight strained years during the Obama administration.

The Israeli leader and President Donald Trump could both use a boost when they meet on Wednesday, CNN reported.

Though both men have declared their mutual support and outlined similar views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the realities of the region and entrenched positions on all sides are likely to intrude on the relationship at some point.

"It's going to be an absolute love fest," said Hussein Ibish, a senior resident scholar at the Arab Gulf States Institute, speaking of the meeting.

"They both know the likelihood is that in the long run there will be tensions and an argument," he said, given that Trump had indicated he wanted to tackle a Middle East peace agreement and has sent conflicting signals on Israel, according to the report.

"But for now, there are no major issues between them. It's going to be a honeymoon," he said.

The President was also considering helping Israel attempt to normalise its relations with Sunni Arab states such as Saudi Arabia, according to the report.

Netanyahu had a tense and at times bitter relationship with former President Barack Obama. Now, he is looking to bolster his perch as Israel's steward of the relationship with Washington, in part to defend himself against challenges from right-wing members of his party.

CNN quoted a source as saying that the White House was still figuring out what its policy towards the Israeli-Palestinian conflict will be. "I think they don't know yet," the source said.

Regarding the concept of the two-state solution to the conflict, a bedrock of current US policy, a senior US official said, "Maybe, maybe not. It's something the two sides have to agree to. It's not for us to impose that vision."

The Trump-Netanyahu meeting at the White House will cover Iran, Syria, ISIS and the two countries' ties, said White House spokesman Sean Spicer.

He also said the two leaders will discuss the prospects for Middle East peace, an effort that Trump has said he wants his son-in-law Jared Kushner to lead.

The "administration will work to achieve comprehensive agreement that would end the Israeli-Palestinian conflict so that Israelis and Palestinians can live in peace and security," Spicer said on Tuesday.

Nearly 60% voting was recorded till 4 pm in the second phase polling in 67 Assembly constituencies across 11 districts of western Uttar Pradesh.

Polling is going on peacefully in Bijnor, Saharanpur, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Bareilly, Amroha, Pilibhit, Kheri, Shahjahanpur and districts, and end at 5 pm.

In the second of the seven-phase polling, 2.28 crore voters, including over 1.04 crore women, are eligible to cast their ballots at 14,771 polling centres and 23,693 polling stations.

"Polling is going on peacefully amid tight security," UP Chief Electoral Officer T Venkatesh said.

Voter turnout, in the first phase on February 11 (rpt February 11), was recorded at 64.2 per cent – an increase of nearly three per cent from the first phase turnout in 2012.

At Bareilly, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi's 115-year-old grandfather Z H Kazmi cast his ballot assisted by his young family members.

At certain places long queues were seen outside polling stations. First time voters were found to be enthusiastic, taking selfies, proudly showing indelible ink imprint on their finger.

Muslim women in burqas were seen outside several booths, while the picture of a newly married couple going to cast vote in Bareilly went viral on social media.

Of the 67 seats at stake, ruling Samajwadi Party had won 34 in 2012, followed by BSP 18, BJP 10, Congress three and others two.

In this phase, 720 candidates are in the fray with a maximum of 22 from Barhapur (Bijnor) and a minimum of four from Dhanaura (Amroha).

Prominent contestants include controversial SP minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam, who are contesting from Rampur and Swar seats respectively. In these constituencies 55 per cent voting was recorded till 4 PM.

Saif Ali Naqvi, son of former Congress MP Zafar Ali Naqvi, former central minister Jitin Prasada from Tilhar (Shahjahanpur), BJP Legislature Party leader Suresh Kumar Khanna from Shahjahanpur city and state minister Mehboob Ali from Amroha.Peaceful polling has been reported in 11 districts of Uttar Pradesh with the poll percentage from as low as 35 per cent to as high as 47 per cent by noon time on Wednesday. The fate of many high profile candidates, including UP cabinet minister Azam Khan is at stake in this second phase of polling in the state.
 
Polling in the second phase of the assembly election was scheduled on 67 seats of  the 11 districts of UP which include western UP, Tarai  and Ruhelkhand areas. The fate of 721 candidates, including 82 women would be locked today in the EVMs .
 
As scheduled polling started at 7 am in the morning, some areas showed an encouraging response of voters while it was a slow start in some others. By 1 pm both Saharanpur and Sambhal recorded a maximum 47 perdent voting while at least 35 per cent was reported in Badaun.

The poll percentage in Moradabad was 40.80 per cent, Amroha 44.75 per cent, Barielly 39 per cent, Rampur 39 per cent, Shahjahanpur 39 per cent, Bijnor 45 per cent,  Pillibheet 41 per cent and Lakheempur Khiri 44.75 per cent.
 
The fate of many star candidates would be at stake in this second phase of election in UP.  From Rampur, SP stalwart Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam are making a political debut from neighbouring Swar constituency in this election.  On Shahjahanpur`s Tilhar constituency, Jatin Prasad of congress  and former SP ministers Anees Ahmed Khan from Beesalpur, Kamal Akhta from Hasanpur seat of Amroha  are trying their fate.

Chief Electoral Officer T Venkatesh said that 2,983 of the total 23,695 polling booths were identified as sensitive and security was scaled up there. Long queues of women, differently-abled and elderly voters were seen in most parts outside the poll booths. 

In the 2012 assembly polls, the average polling in these constituencies was 64 per cent.

Nearly 60% voting was recorded till 4 pm in the second phase polling in 67 Assembly constituencies across 11 districts of western Uttar Pradesh.

Polling is going on peacefully in Bijnor, Saharanpur, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Bareilly, Amroha, Pilibhit, Kheri, Shahjahanpur and districts, and end at 5 pm.

In the second of the seven-phase polling, 2.28 crore voters, including over 1.04 crore women, are eligible to cast their ballots at 14,771 polling centres and 23,693 polling stations.

"Polling is going on peacefully amid tight security," UP Chief Electoral Officer T Venkatesh said.

Voter turnout, in the first phase on February 11 (rpt February 11), was recorded at 64.2 per cent – an increase of nearly three per cent from the first phase turnout in 2012.

At Bareilly, Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi's 115-year-old grandfather Z H Kazmi cast his ballot assisted by his young family members.

At certain places long queues were seen outside polling stations. First time voters were found to be enthusiastic, taking selfies, proudly showing indelible ink imprint on their finger.

Muslim women in burqas were seen outside several booths, while the picture of a newly married couple going to cast vote in Bareilly went viral on social media.

Of the 67 seats at stake, ruling Samajwadi Party had won 34 in 2012, followed by BSP 18, BJP 10, Congress three and others two.

In this phase, 720 candidates are in the fray with a maximum of 22 from Barhapur (Bijnor) and a minimum of four from Dhanaura (Amroha).

Prominent contestants include controversial SP minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam, who are contesting from Rampur and Swar seats respectively. In these constituencies 55 per cent voting was recorded till 4 PM.

Saif Ali Naqvi, son of former Congress MP Zafar Ali Naqvi, former central minister Jitin Prasada from Tilhar (Shahjahanpur), BJP Legislature Party leader Suresh Kumar Khanna from Shahjahanpur city and state minister Mehboob Ali from Amroha.Peaceful polling has been reported in 11 districts of Uttar Pradesh with the poll percentage from as low as 35 per cent to as high as 47 per cent by noon time on Wednesday. The fate of many high profile candidates, including UP cabinet minister Azam Khan is at stake in this second phase of polling in the state.
 
Polling in the second phase of the assembly election was scheduled on 67 seats of  the 11 districts of UP which include western UP, Tarai  and Ruhelkhand areas. The fate of 721 candidates, including 82 women would be locked today in the EVMs .
 
As scheduled polling started at 7 am in the morning, some areas showed an encouraging response of voters while it was a slow start in some others. By 1 pm both Saharanpur and Sambhal recorded a maximum 47 perdent voting while at least 35 per cent was reported in Badaun.

The poll percentage in Moradabad was 40.80 per cent, Amroha 44.75 per cent, Barielly 39 per cent, Rampur 39 per cent, Shahjahanpur 39 per cent, Bijnor 45 per cent,  Pillibheet 41 per cent and Lakheempur Khiri 44.75 per cent.
 
The fate of many star candidates would be at stake in this second phase of election in UP.  From Rampur, SP stalwart Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam are making a political debut from neighbouring Swar constituency in this election.  On Shahjahanpur`s Tilhar constituency, Jatin Prasad of congress  and former SP ministers Anees Ahmed Khan from Beesalpur, Kamal Akhta from Hasanpur seat of Amroha  are trying their fate.

Chief Electoral Officer T Venkatesh said that 2,983 of the total 23,695 polling booths were identified as sensitive and security was scaled up there. Long queues of women, differently-abled and elderly voters were seen in most parts outside the poll booths. 

In the 2012 assembly polls, the average polling in these constituencies was 64 per cent.

Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Wednesday targeted BSP chief Mayawati and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and said only the Samajwadi Party (SP) can bring more development and prosperity in the state.

Addressing a well attended gathering here, Yadav said Modi was busy with 'Mann ki Baat' (Modi's monthly radio address to the nation) and had no time for doing "kaam ki baat (anything worthwhile). He also accused Modi of forcing people to stand outside banks and ATMs in the aftermath of the November 8 demonetisation move.

"All your money is deposited in the banks now, so what are you left with?" he asked the crowd. 

He also took a dig at the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati for her statement in which she said she will prefer sitting in the opposition rather than allying with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) post polls. 

"Not even two phases of the polling has taken place and Mayawati is already talking of sitting in the opposition," he said.

Yadav, who is also the national president of the Samajwadi Party (SP), will be addressing seven rallies on Wednesday.

 Actor Shahid Kapoor, who has a daughter with wife Mira Rajput, finds women superior to men in many ways.

"No man can match up to what a mother does. Women are superior to men in so many ways. Let's learn to appreciate them. And learn to show them love. Every day," the 35-year-old actor tweeted on Wednesday.

The actor welcomed daughter Misha on August 26, 2016.

On the film front, Shahid is working on filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmavati alongside Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh. He will also be seen in Rangoon, which has been directed by Vishal Bhardwaj.

Rangoon, which also stars Saif Ali Khan, is set during World War II. Co-produced by Viacom 18 Motion Pictures and Sajid Nadiadwala under his banner Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment, Rangoon is slated for release on February 24.
 

Expressing concern over the increasing number of undertrial prisoners in jails across the country, the government has urged the high courts to take suo motu action for their release after they complete half of their likely term.

Section 436A of the CrPC provides that if an undertrial has completed half of the likely term he is likely to get for the crime he has allegedly committed, then he or she can be granted bail with or without surety. It is not applicable on offence for which the punishment of death has been specified as one of the punishments under the law.

In a recent letter to chief justices of the 24 high courts, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has said that they should advise the district judiciary to review all such cases and take suo motu action for their release.

"I shall also be grateful if the high court ensures that the undertrial review committee mechanism, for periodic monitoring of undertrial releases, continues to effectively deliver its mandate, so that the basic human rights of the undertrials are not undermined," he wrote.

In September 2014, the Supreme Court had said that states should release all such undertrials who come under the ambit of Section 436A of the CrPC.

According to National Crime Records Bureau estimates, 67 per cent of the people in jails are undertrials — those not yet convicted of any crime.

At 82.4 per cent, Bihar had the highest proportion of undertrials, followed by Jammu and Kashmir at 81.5, Odisha at 78.8, Jharkhand at 77.1 and Delhi at 76.7.

Successive Union Law Ministers and Union Home Ministers have been regularly writing to high courts and state governments to review the status of undertrials.

It's that time of the year again. Vintage and classic beauties are all set to roll out on the roads for the 51st edition of The Statesman Vintage and Classic car rally on Sunday, 26 February, The golden oldies old cars will line up at Statesman House, Barakhamba Road, on the morning of 26 February and the Chief Guest, Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa, will flag off the rally at 10 am.

While there have been over 70 entries till this evening, more are expected as the last date for entries is 18 February. After the flagoff, the cars will proceed to Greater Noida with all the participants set to enjoy the day with their families and friends.

They will wend their way back to the National Stadium near Pragati Maidan where the prize distribution will take place at 3 p m.

A team of judges will evaluate the cars on the basis of their age, maintenance, performance and originality. A new entry this year is 1913 Rolls Royce Phantom owned by Mr Tariq Ibrahim which is coming from Kanpur while the National Rail Museum's 1914 John Morris is coming back after a gap of a year.

The stunning vehicle, always the cynosure of all eyes, missed the 50th Statesman vintage rally last year. The pre-judging of all the cars will take place on 24 and 25 February at Modern School, Barakhamba Road. The panel of judges will be led by veteran Mr RN Seth along with Jitender Pandit, Rakesh Jain, Gyan Sharma, Appa Saheb Alur, Promod Bhasin and Ashwini Kathpalia. For the first time a coffee table book outlining the oldest rally's history will also be launched by Justice Dalveer Bhandari on 26 February evening. Some of the main participants of the rally include Diljeet Titus, Uday Singh Meena, Director, National Rail Museum, Kaleem Khan, Tariq Ibrahim and others.

Last year, among the notable prize winners was a 1919 Citroen entered by Vir Srivastava that won the Statesman Challenge Trophy. The CR Irani Memorial Trophy was won by a 1930 Stutz owned by Diljeet Titus.

The Bikram Singh Memorial Trophy was won by a 1938 Buick owned by HW Bhatnagar and the V Sagar Trophy went to a 1937 Rolls Royce entered by J Housing.

The magnificent machines of the bygone era such as 1938 Buick limousine, Cadillacs, Rolls Royce, Dodges, Jaguars, Chevrolet Impalas, black Baby Austin, Volkswagen Beetle, Willys Jeeps are some of the sedans which will be seen on the roads after 11 days.

President Pranab Mukherjee on Wednesday congratulated ISRO for the record launch of 104 satellites on a single rocket, saying the day will go down as a "landmark" in the history of India's space progaramme.

In his message to Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman A S Kiran Kumar, the President said: "I extend my sincere congratulations and best wishes to you and your team at the ISRO on the successful launch into space of PSLV C37, carrying a record 104 satellites.

"This day shall go down as a landmark in the history of our space programme. The nation is proud of this significant achievement, which has demonstrated, yet again, India's increasing space capabilities," he said.

The President asked Kumar, also the Secretary of the Department of Space, to convey his greetings to the members of his team of scientists, engineers, technologists and all others associated with this "great mission." 

"I urge ISRO to continue to strive for the progress of our space capabilities. I wish all your future endeavours great success," Mukherjee said.

ISRO this morning successfully launched a record 104 satellites on the workhorse PSLV-C37 from the Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh.

Following a public interest litigation (PIL), the Allahabad High Court on Wednesday issued notice to Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati for alleged manipulation of land records.

“Allahabad HC issues notices to BSP chief Mayawati and her relatives for alleged manipulation of land records,” media reports stated.

The PIL was filed by social worker Sandeep Bhati and in the PIL Bhati had alleged that over 47,433 square metres land in Badalpur village of Gautam Buddh Nagar district had been declared as "abadi"(residential/non-agricultural).

“This was done with a view to changing the land use so that sale of the plot, in part or whole, could fetch a huge sum to the owners,” Bhati had alleged.

Apart from Mayawati, the petitioner has impleaded her brother Prabhu Dayal and nephew Anand Kumar as parties in the PIL.

(With inputs from agencies)

Cricketer Virat Kohli, who has been breaking records on the cricket ground, finally expressed his love for longtime beau Anushka Sharma on Instagram.

"Everyday is a valentines day if you want it to be. You make everyday seem like one for me ❤❤. @anushkasharma," Virat wrote.

He posted the message along with a picture of the two of them.

Earlier Kohli and Anushka were spotted spending some quality time in Uttrakhand with the Bachchans and the Ambanis which created a flurry of engagement but the news was denied by the star couple.

Anushka Sharma would be next seen in 'Phillauri' alongside actor Diljit Dosanjh. 

Lobsang Sangay, Prime Minister of the Tibetan administration in India, on Wednesday urged Japanese lawmakers to back the 'middle-way approach' of autonomy for the Tibetan people.

Addressing the Japanese Parliament, Sangay congratulated Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's successful meeting with US President Donald Trump.

"As Abe has said Japan will play a leading role in the international community by coordinating its foreign policies with the US, I urge him to support our 'middle-way approach' towards seeking genuine autonomy for the Tibetan people," he said.

Reiterating that Beijing has no legitimacy in recognising the next Dalai Lama, Sangay said: "Look at their track record. They have destroyed 98 per cent of the monasteries and nunneries. So what credibility they have in recognising the reincarnation of His Holiness.

"Tibet is a litmus test for countries for their moral standard and their expectation for human rights. It is a collective responsibility of the Asian countries who share Tibet's Buddhist civilization and those who depend on Tibet for water to address the issue of Tibet," Sangay added.

In his address, Shimura Hakubun, Chairman of the Japanese Parliamentary Support Group for Tibet, underlined the need to support the preservation of Tibet's Buddhist culture.

The Japanese Parliamentary Support Group for Tibet comprises 87 members of Parliament, the largest parliamentary support group in the world.

Describing Japan as a country which respects human rights, democracy and morality, Yoshiko Sakurai, head of the think tank Japan Institute of National Fundamentals, urged Tokyo to step up its efforts to support the Tibetan people.

The Dalai Lama has lived in exile in India since fleeing his homeland in 1959. The Tibetan administration is based in Dharamsala.

Launching a scathing attack on Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, who is also Samajwadi Party (SP) president, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday said the SP's alliance with the Congress party in the state will shatter the dream of everyone in the state.

"SP-Congress alliance will shatter your dreams," Modi said to the people while addressing a rally at Kannauj in Uttar Pradesh on Wednesday.

"Uttar Pradesh abbreviation UP may be read as 'up', but everything is 'down' in the state," he added.

The prime minister accused the SP of betraying the poor and involving in scams in the state.

"What 'samajwad' (socialism) is this, it is nothing but betrayal of poor; even scams in orphanages in UP," Modi said.

Saying that the SP government is "anti-poor," Modi told the people at the rally that central assistance are not reaching the poor as the state government is not accepting it.

"Central assistance for foodgrains are not reaching the poor as the UP government is not interested in accepting it," Modi said, adding, "The SP government is anti-poor."

Also, hitting out at the Congress party, Modi said that the Opposition has been indulging in all kinds of political games on issues. 

"The Opposition played all types of games in the last three months raking up issues like demonetisation and surgical strikes," he said.

Modi then liken the Congress-SP alliance in the state to a new film shooting.

"There is a new film shooting on the political stage in UP — before interval two parties are fighting and after interval, they are embracing each other," he said.

Polling for the second phase of UP assembly polls for 67 constituencies in 11 districts, began on Wednesday morning amid tight security. Till noon, the polling recorded 25 per cent voting.

The first phase of UP polls was held on February 11 for 73 seats across 15 districts. According to the Election Commission, 64.22 per cent of voters exercised their rights in the first of the seven-phase UP polls.

The Samajwadi Party sealed its alliance with the Congress on January 22 after days of negotiation. The Congress party was allotted 105 seats out of 403 seats.

In a surprising discovery, astronomers have observed a black hole producing cold, star-making fuel from hot plasma jets and bubbles.

The researchers found that powerful radio jets from the black hole — which normally suppress star formation — are stimulating the production of cold gas in the galaxy's extended halo of hot gas.

This newly identified supply of cold, dense gas could eventually fuel future star birth as well as feed the black hole itself, said the study published in the Astrophysical Journal.

The researchers studied a galaxy at the heart of the Phoenix Cluster, an uncommonly crowded collection of galaxies about 5.7 billion light-years from Earth.

The team analysed observations of the Phoenix cluster gathered by the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA), a collection of 66 large radio telescopes spread over the desert of northern Chile.

The researchers believe that the new findings may help to explain the Phoenix cluster's exceptional star-producing power.

They may also provide new insight into how supermassive black holes and their host galaxies mutually grow and evolve.

"With ALMA we can see that there's a direct link between these radio bubbles inflated by the supermassive black hole and the future fuel for galaxy growth," said study lead author Helen Russell, an astronomer with the University of Cambridge in Britain.

"This gives us new insights into how a black hole can regulate future star birth and how a galaxy can acquire additional material to fuel an active black hole," Russell said.

What the researchers believe to be happening is that, as jet inflate bubbles of hot gas near the black hole, they drag behind them a wake of slightly cooler gas.

The bubbles eventually detach from the jets and float further out into the galaxy cluster, where each bubble's trail of gas cools, forming long filaments of extremely cold gas that condense and rain back onto the black hole as fuel for star formation.

"It's a very new idea that the bubbles and jets can actually influence the distribution of cold gas in any way," said study co-author Michael McDonald, an astrophysicist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the US.

WPI inflation is expected to rise in the next three months and is likely to average around 4.4 per cent in 2017, much higher than 2 per cent in 2016, says a Nomura report.

India's WPI inflation rose to a 30-month high of 5.2 per cent in January from 3.4 per cent in December. WPI inflation, which reflects the annual rate of price rise, has risen for the second straight month, notwithstanding the cash crunch following demonetisation.

"The (WPI) acceleration was entirely supply-push led by higher commodity prices rather than demand-pull; but it also suggests rising pressure on profit margins," Nomura India chief economist Sonal Varma said in the note.

The report said there was no sign of demand-driven inflation, as prices of manufactured products such as wood, leather, non-metallic mineral products, machinery & machine tools and transport equipment fell month-on-month in January.

Given weak domestic demand following the demonetisation, demand-side pressures are unlikely to emerge in the immediate future. However, increase in commodity prices and its lagged effect on WPI, suggests WPI inflation will see an uptrend.

"…WPI inflation will rise in the next three months before the inflation rate tapers off," the report said, adding that "we expect WPI inflation to average a much higher 4.4 per cent y-o-y in 2017 versus the 2 per cent average in 2016".

Moreover, CPI inflation is also likely to start rising for reasons like higher food inflation (due to the ongoing remonetisation and higher minimum support prices) and steady core inflation (due to rising rural wages).

On the policy front, Nomura expects the RBI to stay on hold throughout 2017.

The Reserve Bank in its policy review meet on February 8 kept key interest rate unchanged at 6.25 per cent and said that it is awaiting more clarity on inflation trend and impact of demonetisation on growth.

The next meeting of the MPC is scheduled on April 5 and 6, 2017.

Darian King of Barbados won his opening match at the Memphis Open, surprising fifth seeded Bernard Tomic 6-4 6-4 to become the first player from his country to win an ATP Tour match.

This was uncharted territory for King who is also the first player from Barbados in the 41-year history of the tournament.

King, who had to go through the qualifying rounds to get into the tournament, is making just his second appearance in the main draw of an ATP Tour event.

He hammered four aces, won 75 percent of his second-serve points and had no double faults in Tuesday's 66 minute match between the two 24-year olds.

King, who is ranked 140th in the world, said it was a "dream come true."

"Playing against Bernard, the No. 5 seed is a dream come true," King said.

"The discipline in Barbados is not as big so to come from there and compete against these guys, it's a lot of progress.

I'm glad to get my first ATP win.

"I played at least three years in Futures against college guys and Americans then basically had my first breakthrough in Cali, Colombia, in a Challenger against former top 50 player Victor Estrella [Burgos]. Then I realised I can play."

King booked a second round match against Steve Darcis of Belgium who beat Radu Albot 7-5, 3-6, 6-4.

During his only other main draw appearance, at the 2015 Washington ATP event, King lost in the first round.

Australia's Tomic had one double fault and won just half of his second serve points.

Earlier in 2017, Tomic reached the third round of the Australian Open and the quarter-finals of this event two years ago.

In other first round matches Tuesday, Tomic's fellow Aussie Matthew Ebden rallied to beat Canadian qualifier Peter Polansky 6-7 (4/7), 6-3, 6-1 and American Ryan Harrison eased past Russian Konstantin Kravchuk 6-3, 7-5.

Over 25 per cent of the electorate cast their votes till noon in the second phase polling in 67 Assembly constituencies across 11 districts of western Uttar Pradesh.

The districts where polling is on, amid tight security arrangements, are Saharanpur, Bijnor, Moradabad, Sambhal, Rampur, Bareilly, Amroha, Pilibhit, Kheri, Shahjahanpur and Badaun.

In the second of seven-phase election, 2.28 crore voters, including over 1.04 crore women, are eligible to cast their ballots in 14,771 polling centres and 23,693 polling stations.

Official sources said polling was dull initially but picked up as the day wore on.

They said till midday there was no report of any untoward incident and polling was going on smoothly.

"Polling is going on peacefully at all polling stations.

We are keeping a close vigil. The poll percentage is likely to increase as the day proceeds," UP Chief Electoral Officer T Venkatesh said.

At certain places long queues were seen outside polling stations. First time voters were found to be enthusiastic, taking selfies proudly showing indelible ink imprint on their fingers.

Muslim women in burqas were seen outside several booths, while the picture of a newly married couple going to cast vote in Bareilly went viral on social media.

Elaborate arrangements have been made for free and fair polling with deployment of 51,771 police constables, 52,598 homeguards, 5,397 sub-inspectors and 3,666 head constables to maintain law and order.

Of the 67 seats at stake, ruling Samajwadi Party had won 34 in 2012, followed by BSP 18, BJP 10, Congress three and others two.

In this phase, 720 candidates are in the fray with a maximum of 22 from Barhapur (Bijnor) and a minimum of four nominees from Dhanaura (Amroha).

Prominent contestants include controversial SP minister Azam Khan and his son Abdullah Azam, who are contesting from Rampur and Swar seats respectively, Saif Ali Naqvi, son of former Congress MP Zafar Ali Naqvi, former central minister Jitin Prasada from Tilhar (Shahjahanpur), BJP Legislature Party leader Suresh Kumar Khanna from Shahjahanpur city and state minister Mehboob Ali from Amroha.