Actor Joy Mukherjee dies at 73

Mumbai, Mar 9 (PTI) Veteran actor Joy Mukherjee, who starred in several Bollywood hits in the '60s, passed away this morning after prolonged illness at a hospital here. He was 73. "He passed away today morning at 9.30 am. He died due to prolonged illness and old age. His lungs were not functioning and he could not breathe, hence he was on ventilator. His condition was critical since last three days," Joy Mukherhee's spokesperson told PTI. The actor was admitted to the Leelavati hospital on Monday. "He was running with high fever and was unconscious and his overall condition was critical since three-four days," spokesperson said. Mukherjee comes from a film family. His father Sashadhar Mukherjee was married to legendary actor Ashok Kumar's sister Sati Devi and was the co-founder of Filmalaya Studios. His brothers are Deb Mukherjee and Shomu Mukherjee. Shomu is married to actress Tanuja & their daughters are actresses Kajol and Tanisha. Incidently, his father was skeptical about Mukherjee's movie career. He agreed only after Agha jani Kashmeri convinced him. Agha jani wrote the script of 1"Love in Simla", Mukherjee's debut film opposite Sadhana in 1960. He went on to delivered several hit films like hits like "Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon", "Love in Tokyo", "Ziddi", "Ek Musafir Ek Hasina" to name a few. After his career dried up with the emergence of stars like Dharmendra, Jeetendra and Rajesh Khanna, Mukherjee ventured into direction with films like "Love in Bombay" (1974), "Chhaila Babu" (1977), "Saanjh Ki Bela" (1981) and "Umeed" (1989). The actor is survived by wife Neelam and they have three children - two sons and a daughter. Veteran actor Dilip Kumar with his wife Saira Banu and music composer-singer Bappi Lahiri had visited the ailing actor-filmmaker yesterday.

With love from Simla to Tokyo: Bollywood hero Joy Mukherjee left the mark

Joy Mukherjee

It is hard to define Joy Mukherjee. You could call him a chocolate-boy hero with an infectious smile. Or you could look at that strapping frame to realise why many in the sixties felt he was the closest Bollywood had to Rock Hudson machismo. 

Co-stars would define him as the ultimate prankster who never left space for a dull moment on the sets. 

Joy Mukherjee was an enigma in ways more than one. His meteoric rise thanks to sixties jubilee hits such as Love In Tokyo, Ziddi, Shagird and Phir Wohi Dil Laya Hoon was as abrupt as his bowing out of the limelight after around a decade of glory. 

For the record Joy breathed his last in Mumbai's Lilavati Hospital on Friday after a prolonged illness at the age of 73. The man, who made broad-shouldered athleticism a fashionable image for the Bollywood hero long before the Khans and the Kumars discovered the gym, spent his last days on the ventilator. 

'His wife Neelam Mukherjee was by his side when he passed away at 9.30 am on Friday. We are yet to decide the time and venue of the cremation,' said the actor's spokesperson R.R. Pathak. 

Joy is survived by his wife, two sons and a daughter. 

Hailing from a film family, Joy made his debut at the age of 21 in the 1960 hit Love In Simla opposite Sadhana. His father Sashadhar Mukherjee, a noted filmmaker who co-founded Filmalaya Studios, produced the film. A series of hits followed. 

Joy Mukherjee was leading star of 60s: Amitabh Bachchan

Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has paid homage to the veteran actor JoyMukherjee, saying he was a leading star of 1960s.

Bachchan tweeted his grief over the sudden demise of Mukherjee.

"Joy Mukherjee passes away. Leading man and a star during his time. Condolences to members of his family and prayers," he posted.

Mukherjee passed away this morning after prolonged illness atLilavati hospital. The 73-year-old actor was not keeping well for quite sometime.

Deb, younger brother of Joy, said his brother was a moral strength in his life.

"He was a great brother, a good friend and a brilliant actor. He has been my support system. He was my moral strength," said Deb.

Deb Mukherjee has acted in few films alongside his elder brother, Joy, including, Haiwan (1977), Ek Bar Mooskura Do (1972).

"We have grown up together there are lots of small moments and we are all going to definitely miss him a lot," he said.

MANDATE 2012: PUNJAB

Badal to be Chief Minister, swearing-in on March 14

Sukhbir hugs his father Parkash S.
 Badal after the latter was elected
leader of the SAD-BJP alliance. 

This will be Badal Sr’s 5th term in office

Chandigarh, March 9
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) supremo Parkash Singh Badal is all set to be sworn in as Punjab CM for a historic fifth term on March 14 with the SAD-BJP alliance today unanimously electing him as its legislature party leader. The swearing-in would take place at the Banda Bahadur Memorial at Chhapar Chiri and several top BJP leaders are expected to attend.

After unanimously being elected leader of the SAD Legislature Party yesterday, Badal Senior was BJP-SAD legislators’ unanimous choice to be leader of the Vidhan Sabha today.

SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal told The Tribune, “Badal Sahib will remain Chief Minister for as long as he wishes. He is the party’s senior-most leader whose contribution to the state and the party is unparalleled.”

Badal’s name was suggested by BJP observer Shanta Kumar and proposed by party state chief Ashwani Sharma. After it was seconded by Sukhbir and endorsed by BJPLegislature Party leader Bhagat Chunni Lal, others like Jathedar Tota Singh and Madan Mohan Mittal welcomed the decision with thunderous claps.

The Akali stalwart is the alliance’s choice to head the government for several reasons. First, this was an electoral promise made by the SAD. Secondly, with the party securing 56 seats and the support of three Independents besides 12 members of the BJP, the government is firmly in place for the next five years. So, Sukhbir is in no hurry to receive the baton from his father.

After an emotional Sukhbir hugged his father, Badal Senior took a moment to respond as his thoughts went back to his wife Surinder Kaur, who passed away last year. Quick to return to the present, Badal said, “I have no words to express my gratitude to all the MLAs who have given me this enormous responsibility.” His characteristic smile also returned.

When PS Badal took over as Chief Minister for the first time in 1969, he was the country’s youngest CM. When he would be sworn-in for a record fifth time on March 14, he will be the country’s oldest CM.

Talking about the SAD-BJP alliance, Badal said the relationship was very close to his heart. Despite either party’s performance, we will stay together through thick and thin, he said. Coming from Badal, a seasoned politician, the words were perhaps meant to assure the BJP that it had nothing to fear, even though the SAD could form a government on its own.

After the meeting, the Badals, Bhagat Chuni Lal, Ashwani Sharma and Shanta Kumar drove to the Punjab Raj Bhawan and handed over a copy of resolution electing Parkash Singh Badal as leader of the SAD-BJP Legislature Party to Governor Shivraj V Patil. The Governor has invited Badal to form the government in Punjab.

International Women's Day Special

S Satyavathi is first woman loco pilot of Andhra Pradesh

Making waves: S Satyavathi

Hyderabad, March 9

For S Satyavathi, Women’s Day turned out to be a truly special day in her career. She stormed yet a male bastion to become the first woman loco pilot in Andhra Pradesh.

Joining the Railways in 1999 as an assistant loco pilot, Satyavathi’s tryst with the destiny came, quite fittingly, on Women’s Day when she drove a suburban train in the city. Without any assistant pilot, she independently handled the Mathrubhoomi Ladies Special MMTS train from Falaknuma to Lingampally.

The feat has earned her the distinction of being the first independent woman loco pilot in the state. The Platform Number 7 at Secunderabad Railway Station, the headquarters of South Central Railway, wore a festive look as officials and members of the railway unions felicitated Satyavathi before she took control of the engine, thus breaking yet another traditional barrier.

Satyavathi, who has now earned a place in the hall of fame of woman Loco pilots in Indian Railways, joined the Railways as assistant loco pilot in 1999 at Bengaluru. She was later transferred to the Secunderabad division. She was promoted as loco pilot (goods) in September 2005 and had been shuttling goods trains in and around Hyderabad before her present promotion.

After successfully clearing her MMTS (Multi-Modal Transport Service) training in January this year, she was exposed to live handling and requisite track learning and was subsequently found fit to run MMTS trains in suburban sections of the twin cities. Her biggest achievement is that she will be single-handedly managing and working on MMTS trains, without the help of any assistant loco pilot.

“I am honoured as the MMTS has now become the life line of the poor and middle-class people living in the suburban areas of twin cities,” Satyavathi said.

Driving loco trains, especially the long-distance passenger trains, is a tough job. The work timings are not fixed and it involves continuous travel. The Railways has a meticulous system of training its loco pilots and only suitable candidates, after rigorous training, are inducted into the service.

The Secunderabad division of the SCR has four more women assistant loco pilots being groomed to be loco pilots in future. 

Obesity-related liver disease on the upswing in India

Chandigarh, March 9
Obesity-related liver disease could well go on to become the number one cause of liver cirrhosis (permanent and irreversible scarring of the liver) in India as in the US.

Indians with waist circumference and Body Mass Index (BMI) lower than the Americans face the same risk of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), which has so far been typically associated with western lifestyles, low physical activity, high-calorie diet and high obesity.

A significant new study from West Bengal has shown high prevalence of NAFLD among members of rural population who were neither alcohol consumers nor overweight or obese.

“The study indicates that Asian Indians anywhere globally could be at higher risk of having fatty liver disease than previously thought. Indians who believe they are safer being thinner than Americans and less obese are actually at a disproportionately higher risk of NAFLD than the Americans,” Dr Patrick S Kamath, Professor of Hepatology from Mayo Clinic College of Medicine today told The Tribune in an exclusive interview on the sidelines of the International Liver Summit being organised by Fortis Hospital, Mohali.

The summit, which has over 40 global liver experts among participants, was inaugurated today by Prof Stephen A Locarnini, Director, World Health Organisation Regional Reference Laboratory for viral hepatitis B.

About 8.5 per cent of the population sampled in the West Bengal study was found to be having fatty liver, a finding which experts of National Institute of Health, US, describe as “remarkable” considering this disease was hitherto thought to be one of the west.

Long periods of sitting is unhealthy

Taking a break to walk every 20 minutes instead of staying seated for hours helps reduce the body’s levels of glucose and insulin after eating, according to a study — the latest to highlight the hazards of long periods of inactivity.

Though the results, published in the journal Diabetes Care, don’t show whether these reductions have any lasting health benefits, experiencing large glucose and insulin spikes after a meal is tied to a greater risk of heart disease and diabetes.

“When we sit our muscles are in a state of disuse and they’re not contracting and helping our body to regulate many of the body’s metabolic processes,” said David Dunstan, a professor at Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Melbourne, Australia.

Dunstan and his colleagues have reported previously that people who watch more than four hours of TV a day are likely to have an earlier death. With this study, they experimented with how prolonged sitting could affect responses to food.

After a meal, glucose levels in the blood go up, followed by a rise in insulin, which helps cells use blood sugar for energy or store it. Then, levels in the bloodstream start to go down. In people with type 2 diabetes, this process falls out of whack usually because the body no longer responds to insulin properly. After a meal, blood sugar and insulin levels spike and remain high.

Dunstan’s group looked at 19 overweight adults who didn’t exercise much, asking them to come into a laboratory and sit for seven hours while having their blood sugar and insulin levels sampled hourly.

After the first two hours, they drank a 763-calorie drink high in sugar and fat, then sat for another five hours.

Each person went through three days of experiments, with each day separated by a week or two.

On one day, they sat the entire time, only taking breaks to use the bathroom. On another, they broke up the sitting session and took a two-minute break to walk around every 20 minutes following the drink — and on another day, they took similar breaks, but with more vigorous activity.

The days when people sat without interruption resulted in a spike in blood sugar within an hour of the drink from about 90 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dl) to about 144 mg/dl.

On days when they got up every 20 minutes, blood sugar rose from 90 mg/dl to only about 125 mg/dl.

Overall, getting up and engaging in light activity reduced the total rise in glucose by an average of 24 per cent, compared to the group that kept sitting. That difference was almost 30 per cent with moderate-intensity activity.

The results were similar for insulin. Levels peaked about two hours after the drink, but they rose higher when the people continued sitting compared with moving about.

“What’s shocking to me in these studies is not how good breaks are but how bad sitting is,” said Barry Braun, a professor at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, who was not involved in the study.

He said a good rule of thumb is to try and get up about every 15 minutes, even if it’s just to walk around the room.

What’s not clear is whether the 30 per cent reduction in glucose and insulin levels will translate into health benefits.

“This was only studied over one day. The next question is, can that reduction be (achieved regularly) and translate to reductions in atherosclerosis?” said Dunstan, whose group is now working on a longer experiment.

Survey ranks Google almost everyone’s favorite search engine

SAN FRANCISCO — Google is almost everyone’s favorite search engine, despite misgivings about data-collection and advertising practices that are widely seen as intrusive.

A survey of released Friday by the Pew Internet & American Life Project found 83 percent of U.S. search engine users rated Google as their preferred search engine. That was up from 47 percent in 2004, the last time that Pew gauged people’s attitudes about Internet search engines.

Yahoo’s search engine ranked a distant second at 6 percent, according to the latest numbers, down from 26 percent in 2004.

Google Inc. has turned its dominant position in Internet search into a gold mine. The company’s Internet search engine is the hub of an advertising system that generated $36.5 billion in revenue last year — up from $3 billion in 2004.

But the Pew findings also indicate Google may be risking its popularity by trying to learn more about users in a quest to sell more advertising.

Nearly three-fourths of search engine users said they don’t want search engines to sift through their personal information to deliver results tailored to their individual interests. Google has been doing this more frequently since January when its search engine began to include personal information pulled from Google’s social networking service, Plus.

More than two-thirds said they don’t want to be targeted by customized ads because they don’t want their Web surfing activities to be tracked and analyzed.

Google might be vulnerable to a backlash if its major rivals, including Yahoo Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Facebook Inc., didn’t also collect personal information to help them aim their ads at the right audiences.

Like its rivals, Google believes a well-placed ad is appreciated by most Web surfers. To gain a better grasp on people’s preferences, Google this month overhauled its privacy policy to enable the company to compile individual dossiers on its logged-in users’ activities on more than 60 different services, including Internet search.

Pew took its survey of 2,253 adults, including 1,729 Internet users, before the March 1 revision to Google’s privacy policy, but mostly after the company had announced its changes. The poll spanned Jan. 20 through Feb. 19. The changes were announced Jan. 24. The results based on Internet users have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points

Google and its rivals say they offer a variety of tools to protect their privacy, including ways to erase their search histories. But only 38 percent of Internet users are aware of these privacy-protection options, Pew found.

Whatever privacy fears might be nagging them, most people remain comfortable using search engines. Pew found 59 percent of online Americans use a search engine at least once day, up from 29 percent in 2004.

Want to save Gas……….Take Good Care of your Car

Fill up with a lower-octane gasoline. Buy the lowest grade or octane of gasoline that is appropriate for your car. Unless your car requires premium gasoline, filling up your car with high-octane fuel is a waste of money. That pricey premium fuel won’t boost your car’s fuel economy or performance in the least, so skip it.

Don’t top off. Don’t bother topping off when filling your car’s gas tank. Any additional gas is just going to slop around or seep out. Why waste your money paying for gas your car won’t use? Stop pumping at the first indication that your tank is full when the automatic nozzle clicks off.

Tighten up that gas cap. Gas will evaporate from your car’s gas tank if it has an escape.  So be sure to tighten up that gas cap each time you fuel up your car.

Go for the shade. The hot summer sun that makes the inside of your car feel like a sauna also zaps fuel from your gas tank.So park your car in the shade of a building or tree whenever possible. And buy a good windshield shade. A windshield shade blocks sunlight and helps to keep heat out of the inside of your car.

Use your garage for your car. Got a garage? Clear it out and make room for your car. Parking in your garage will help your car stay warm in winter and cool in summer, and you won’t have to depend as much on your gas-guzzling air-conditioning or defroster when you drive.

Pump up your tires. Don’t get caught driving on under inflated tires. Under inflated tires wear down more quickly and they also lower your car’s gas mileage.Your car’s gas mileage may plummet by as much as 15 percent. Driving on under inflated tires may also reduce the life of your tires by 15 percent or more.

Check your tire pressure once a month. Buy a digital gauge and keep it in your glove box. Compare the pressure in your tires with the recommended pressure listed in your owner’s manual and on the placard in your car door. Then inflate your tires as needed. Be sure to check tire pressure when your tires are cold. A good time is early in the morning after your car’s been idle overnight.

Keep your engine in tune. Fixing a car that is out of tune or has failed an emissions test can boost gas mileage by about 4 percent. So be sure to give your car regular tune-ups. You’ll also want to watch out for worn spark plugs. A misfiring spark plug can reduce a car’s fuel efficiency by as much as 30 percent.

Replace air filters. Keep a close eye on your engine’s air filter. When the engine air filter clogs with dirt, dust and bugs, it causes your engine to work harder and your car becomes less fuel-efficient. Replacing a clogged air filter could improve your gas mileage by as much as 10 percent and save you 15 cents a gallon. It’s a good idea to have your engine air filter checked at each oil change.

Use the right oil. You can improve your car’s gas mileage by 1 percent to 2 percent by using the manufacturer’s recommended grade of motor oil. Opt for motor oil with the words “energy conserving” on the API performance label. This oil contains friction-reducing additives.

Don’t skimp on maintenance. Be serious about auto care. Your car’s performance depends on it.

A huge 80 per cent of NRI's in the U.S. would vote for Barack Obama over anyone else

President Barack Obama is the popular candidate for NRI's in the U.S.

Most Indian-American's would vote for Barack Obama in the November presidential elections, a study shows.

A total of 80 per cent of NRI's said they would vote for the President in the latest opinion poll.

Mitt Romney came out as the Republican favourite among remaining voters.

The online survey was conducted between February 22 to 26 with respondents from across the country.

The study conducted by Boston-based INE Media Inc. - the publisher of IndUS Business Journal and INDIA New England newspaper stated: 'Former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney leads his nearest rivals Ron Paul by 24.1 percentage points and former Senator Rick Santorum by 33.4 percentage points.

'But if the presidential eU.S.lections were held today, an overwhelming 80 per cent of Asian Indians would vote for President Barack Obama.'

Upendra Mishra, publisher of IndUS Business Journal and INDIA New England told the Hindustan Times: 'This is the first survey of Asian Indians during this presidential election season.

'Indians have been primarily known in the United States for their entrepreneurial skills with excellence in the academic, scientific and technology fields, but now they're making their mark on both the local and national political scenes'.

In the survey, Romney got the maximum support among the Republican candidates from the participants with 51.9 per cent.

However, Obama came out on top with 80 per cent behind him when pitted against the Republican candidates with Romney securing 14.7 per cent of support from the participants.

PUNJAB POLLS 2012 RESULTS

Badal makes History IN PUNJAB, retains power

How the Akali-BJP combine bucked the anti-incumbency trend and routed the Congress despite the Manpreet factor

WHY THE AKALIS WON

n The SAD announced a populist manifesto that promised continuing subsidies through schemes like atta-dal, pensions, free electricity and watern Fearing that Manpreet would bite into their vote bank, SAD started preparing for the polls much before the Congress and reviewed its strengths and weaknessesn The Badal father-son duo remained accessible to the people. This was perhaps what also paid back. The combination of governance reforms agenda clubbed with availability of the Akali  leadership paid offn Badal Sr managed to keep his flock together. Giving a united fight, the SAD managed to get even "paratroopers" like Janmeja Singh Sekhon win from a constituency like Maur

Chandigarh, March 6
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD)-BJP alliance made history by overcoming anti-incumbency to retain power  for the second consecutive term, thus creating history in the Punjab electoral politics. By winning 56 seats on its own and with its alliance partner BJP winning 12 seats, this will be the first time in Punjab’s history that a ruling party has been voted back to power.
By wrestling 68 of the 117 Assembly sets, the Akali BJP combine has got a formidable lead over its main rival, Congress, which has won 46 seats. While three independents have won at the hustings, the Third Front under the banner of “Sanjha Morcha” has failed to get any seat.
The People’s Party of Punjab (PPP) which was part of the third front failed to open its account and its president Manpreet Singh Badal lost both Gidderbaha and Maur seats. In fact he was third on both these two seats. The SAD-BJP alliance won the contest, but several of its heavyweights fell. This includes Vidhan Sabha Speaker Nirmal Singh Kahlon and ministers, Hira  Singh Gabria, Sucha Singh Langha, Tikshan Sud, Ranjit Singh Brahampura, Satpal Gosain. Arunesh Kumar, Sewa Singh Sekhwan, Upinderjit Kaur, besides others.
It was only a one per cent swing in votes that gave the SAD - BJP alliance a gain of 22 seats. The SAD-BJP alliance polled 42 per cent votes with the Congress getting 41 per cent of the vote share. The PPP got six per cent votes that damaged the Congress more than it could harm the Akali Dal. Independents and others according to initial reports secured 11 percent votes that upset many poll calculations.
With a clear verdict in his party’s favour, SAD patron Parkash Singh Badal is all set to be the Chief Minister of Punjab for the fifth time.
On the other hand, his bete noire and Punjab Congress President Capt Amarinder Singh, while conceding defeat for his party, accepted that the presence of 22 rebels against official party nominees was one of the major reasons for the setback.
Though the elections for the 117 seats were held on January 30, the people of Punjab have had to wait for nearly five weeks to know the outcome. The Model Code of Conduct remains in place till March 9 after which the swearing in of the chief minister and his cabinet would take place.
Chief Minister Badal said that his party was voted back to power because the SAD-BJP alliance lived up to every promise it made to the people. Besides, the alliance was successful in maintaining peace and communal harmony, besides ushering development - which translated into a victory for us, he said.
The SAD - BJP emerged victorious due to several reasons. It announced populist manifesto that promised continuing subsidies through schemes like atta-dal, pensions, free electricity and water, etc. In contrast, the PPP that was opposed to withdrawal of subsidies was completely voted out.
The split in the SAD in October 2010 with the then finance minister Manpreet Badal breaking away has proved advantageous to the Akalis. Fearing that Manpreet would bite into their vote bank, they started preparing for the current elections much ahead of the Congress and braced up their cadres and reviewed the party’s strengths and weaknesses.
The failure of the Congress to involve prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh in the election campaign also proved costly. In the 2009 Parliamentary elections the Congress got a lot of votes in his name. But fearing that the scams faced by the Manmohan Singh Government may turn into major issues, the Congress let its President Sonia Gandhi and her family become the star campaigners. This did not click with Punjabis. Further the bigger scams at the centre overshadowed the smaller issues in Punjab.
Both the Badals - father-son duo - remained accessible to the people. This was perhaps what also paid back. The combination of governance reforms agenda clubbed with availability of the Akali leadership paid off.
Punjab like Haryana has an important lesson for the region. Alternating government every five years is now a thing of the past, reasonable governance with welfare measure for the people can ensure a repeat mandate. It has happened in Gujarat, Bihar and now people have started evaluating performance.
But what is true for the Akalis is not really the case for its alliance partner the BJP. The BJP has come down from 19 seats it held in 2007 to 12 this time. But it has done better than most people had expected. The most important reason for BJP doing well is that the SAD has helped the BJP come up higher than it would have done on its own. Further, the BJP managed to curb the rot in its ranks by completely eliminating dissidence. Lastly, the BJP replaced many of its candidates brining freshness into its campaign leading to a fair performance.
The Congress was jubilant and was expecting a lot from these polls simply on the presumption that was its turn to form the next government. But with the central Congress leadership faltering in giving any direction to the state leadership and then failing to identify and give tickets to the right candidates led it to its current state. The Congress leaders in Delhi got tickets for their cronies in Punjab with a view to have a proxy base in the state. This did not work for either the candidates or the party whose official nominees were faced by 22 rebels.
Badal on the other hand managed to keep his flock together. Giving a united fight, the SAD managed to get even “paratroopers” like Janmeja Singh Sekhon win from a constituency like Maur. For the Congress factors like Dera Sacha Sauda also did not work.
Sukhbir Badal who is getting all the credit for leading his party to victory has mastered the art of winning elections. He summed up the success of his party by saying, “The art of contesting elections has changed and one must adapt to the trends to be successful”.

Akhilesh Yadav comes of age in rough, tough UP politics

New Delhi, March 6 (IANS) Akhilesh Yadav, the Samajwadi Party's young member of parliament from Kannauj, Tuesday proved he had come of age in Uttar Pradesh's rough and tumble politics, steering his party to a landslide victory in elections to the 403-seat state assembly.

With results showing that the party has won 224 seats on its own in the state, all eyes are on Akhilesh Yadav who was in the forefront fielding the media and articulating the party's views and strategies.

As results started pouring in, there was speculation of Akhilesh becoming chief minister. However, he brushed it aside saying: "I am not in the race for chief minister's post. The party feels that the responsibility should go to Netaji (his father and party chiefMulayam Singh Yadav)."

Akhilesh's leadership of the party in the most crucial state in Indian politics has only come in for closer scrutiny in the recent months and run-up to the seven-phased elections.

An engineer by training, having studied in Karnataka's University of Mysore, Akhilesh, 39, also had education in Australia.

This background helped him in bringing in new perspectives to the party's policies. The party has promised free laptops for students and computer education, with a focus on educating girls, in the state.

Considered a youth icon with a judicious mix of leadership qualities, he had, during the high voltage poll campaign, raised issues concerning both urban and rural India such as poverty, agriculture, corruption and social evils.

The young Samjawadi Party leader had carried out an intensive campaign for the party in the elections, taking to the street on foot and on cycle.

He reached out to people at the grassroots through road shows across the state and sought to convey a message of being accessible and reachable.

Party leaders said Akhilesh reshaped SP's thinking by going beyond caste mobilisation and sought to connect its campaign to the aspirations of the youth in the country's most populous state, which lags behind in human development parameters.

Akhilesh also attempted to wash off the taint of his party's association with criminal elements during its rule in the state. He vetoed induction of don-turned-politician D.P. Yadav.

Akhilesh had jumped into the poll fray in 2000 during a by-poll and won the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat, previously held by his father. Since then, he has won all the Lok Sabha elections from that constituency. He had also won the Firozabad Lok Sabha seat in 2009, but vacated it to retain Kannauj.

His wife, Dimple Yadav, contested the Firozabad by-poll later, but failed to win it.

Born in Saifai in Uttar Pradesh's Etawah district, Akhilesh is a self-confessed nature lover. As a member of parliament, he has been a member of several committees, including those on forests and environment, science and technology and urban development.

Indian States Assembly results major blow for Congress, Rahul Gandhi

Congress leaders admitted they were stunned as results from five state elections showed the party faced defeats in Punjab and Goa and a poor showing in Uttar Pradesh.

The Congress was on top in Uttarakhand but short of an outright majority. The only good news came from Manipur, where the Congress was set to sweep and retain power.

Congress leaders quickly rushed to insulate their star campaigner in Uttar Pradesh and general secretary Rahul Gandhi from criticism, saying that a wide variety of factors were to blame for the multiple disaster.

"We are very surprised, we are shocked," Congress leader and Minister of State for Science and Technology Ashwani Kumar said.

"This calls for very serious reflection and introspection on what went wrong," he added, disappointment writ large on his face.

But he said that the Uttar Pradesh and other state verdicts "are a reflection of how people view various political parties in their states".

Congress chief spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi was downcast.

The results in Punjab, where the Akali Dal-BJP combine is set to retain power, a first in the state for any ruling party, were 'extremely baffling', he said.

'I am very disappointed,' he added, commenting on the overall outcome of the February-March polling in Manipur, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh and Goa.

Rajiv Shukla of the Congress struck a different note: 'We are not happy but you cannot say it is a pathetic showing.'

Political pundits and opposition activists heaped scorn on the Congress and its leadership.

A Congress source admitted to IANS that the results were 'a major blow' and were partly a result of the corruption charges faced by the Congress-led government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

'There is no doubt that corruption played a big role in voters' thinking,' said the source not willing to be identified.

The source said the Congress also blundered by injecting 'communal politics' towards the end of campaign in Uttar Pradesh when it promised to reserve special job quotas for Muslims.

Marxist leader Suhasini Ali said the Congress blundered by not projecting anyone as a possible chief minister even as it sought a clear mandate from voters.

'Then the central government's non-performance and price rise are also factors,' she said. 'As for the 22 Congress MPs who won in 2009, they were a huge disappointment for their electorate.'

Sudheendra Kulkarni of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) underlined that there was 'a very strong anti-Congress sentiment' in almost all the states that went to the polls.

Congress-turned-Samajwadi Party politician Shahid Siddiqui said the Congress leadership's 'ostrich like attitude' and 'refusal to learn' from previous mistakes were major factors.

Minister Ashwani Kumar added: 'We (Congress) need to strengthen our organisational structure.'

Apart from Uttar Pradesh, where Rahul Gandhi's 200-plus election rallies were expected to give the party a major boost, the Congress was also stunned that it was unable to dislodge the Akali-BJP combine in Punjab.

The Congress-led government was expected to be voted out in Goa but was in the reckoning for power in BJP-ruled Uttarakhand, though not in the manner it would have desired.

Insurgency-hit Manipur was its only saving grace, with the Congress-led government getting an emphatic mandate for five more years, decimating a coalition of several opposition parties.

Assembly elections 2012: Winners and losers

Prominent winners and losers in the five states are:

Uttar Pradesh

Winners:

• Rita Bahuguna Joshi, Lucknow Cantt, Congress
• Kalraj Mishra, Lucknow East, Bharatiya Janata Party
• Abhishek Misra (ex-professor at IIM Ahmedabad), Lucknow West, Samajwadi Party
• Jayant Chaudhary, (son of Rashtriya Lok Dal chief Ajit Singh), Mant, RLD

Losers:

• Nakul Dubey (Close Mayawati aide and minister), Bakshi ka Talaab, Bahujan Samaj Party
• Keshari Nath Tripathi (former assembly speaker), Allahabad South, BJP
• Atiq Ahmad (mafia don-turned-politician), Allahabad West, Apna Dal
• Ameeta Singh (Gandhi family confidante and former national badminton player), Amethi, Congress
• Rajveer Singh (former chief minister Kalyan Singh's son), Dibai, Jan Kranti Party

Uttarakhand

Winners:

• Ramesh Pokhriyal (former chief minister), Doiwala, BJP
• Yashpal Arya (Congress state unit chief), Baajpur, Congress
• Bishan Singh Chufal (BJP state president), Didihaat, BJP

Losers:

• B.C. Khanduri, Kotdwar, BJP

Punjab

Winners:

• Parkash Singh Badal, Lambi, Akali Dal
• Sukhbir Singh Badal, Jalalabad, Akali Dal
• Amarinder Singh, Patiala Urban, Congress
• Jagir Kaur (former Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee president), Bholath, Akali Dal
• Rajinder Kaur Bhattal (former chief minister), Lehra, Congress

Losers:

• Raninder Singh (Amarinder Singh's son), Samana, Congress
• Tikshan Sud (outgoing minister), Hoshiarpur, BJP
• Upinderjit Kaur (finance minister), Sultanpur Lodhi, Akali Dal
• D.S. Guru (ex-principal secretary to chief minister), Bhadaur, Akali Dal
• P.S. Gill (ex-director general of police), Moga, Akali Dal

Goa

Winners:

• Chief Minister Digambar Kamat, Margao, Congress
• Pratapsing Rane, (speaker), Poriem, Congress
• Manohar Parrikar, Panaji, Bharatiya Janata Party
• Vishwajit Rane (health minister), Valpoi, Congress
• Atanasio Monserrate (education minister), St Cruz, Congress

Losers:

• Ravi Naik (home minister), Ponda, Congress
• Churchill Alemao (public works department minister), Navelim, Congress
• Arjun Salgaonkar (scion of mining baron Anil Salgaonkar), Independent, Sanvordem
• Sameer Salgaonkar (scion of mining baron Anil Salgaonkar), Trinamool Congress, Mandrem

Manipur

Winners:

• Okram Ibobi Singh, Thoubal, Congress
• N. Biren Singh (minister and government spokesman), Heingang, Congress
• Landhoni Devi (chief minister's wife), Khangabok, Congress
• Debendra Sing (revenue minister), Jiribam, Congress
• Gaikhangam (state Congress chief), Nungba, Congress

Losers:

• Radhabinod Koijam (former chief minister), Tipaimukh, Nationalist Congress Party,
• O. Joy Singh (Manipur Peoples Party chief), Langthabal, MPP
• Th. Chaoba Singh (former union minister), Nambol, MPP
• Nimaichand Luwang (convener of 11-member non-Congress front Peoples' Democratic Alliance), Wangkhem, NCP

Punjab Assembly Election 2012 Winning Candidates List

Punjab Election 2012 Results

The list of candidates who have won in the Punjab Election (Punjab State Assembly Elections) 2012. The winners name along with their party names.

No	Candidate	Constituency	Party
1	Shri Sunil Kumar Jakhar	Abohar	INC
2	Pawan Kumar Tinu	Adampur (SC)	SAD
3	AMARPAL SINGH	Ajnala	SAD
4	IQBAL SINGH JHUNDAN	Amargarh	SAD
5	Randeep Singh	Amloh	INC
6	Sh. Om parkash Soni	Amritsar Central	INC
7	Navjot Kaur Siddhu	Amritsar East	BJP
8	Anil Joshi	Amritsar North	BJP
9	Inderbir Singh Bolaria	Amritsar South	SAD
10	RAJ KUMAR	Amritsar West (SC)	INC
11	Madan Mohan Mittal	Anandpur Sahib	BJP
12	SIMARJIT SINGH BAINS	Atam Nagar	IND
13	Gulzar Singh Ranike	Attari (SC)	SAD
14	Manjeet Singh Mianwind	Baba Bakala (SC)	SAD
15	Chaudhary Nand Lal	Balachaur	SAD
16	Gurtej Singh	Balluana (SC)	SAD
17	Tarlochan Singh	Banga (SC)	INC
18	Kewal Singh Dhillon	Barnala	INC
19	Nirmal Singh	Bassi Pathana (SC)	SAD
20	ASHWANI SEKHRI	Batala	INC
21	Darshan Singh KotFatta	Bathinda Rural (SC)	SAD
22	Sarup Chand Singla	Bathinda Urban	SAD
23	Sh. Mohammed Sadique	Bhadaur (SC)	INC
24	MAHESHINDER SINGH	Bhagha Purana	SAD
25	Seema Devi	Bhoa (SC)	BJP
26	Bibi Jagir Kaur	Bholath	SAD
27	Ajaib Singh	Bhucho Mandi (SC)	INC
28	Chetan Singh Samaon	Budhlada (SC)	SAD
29	Sohan Singh Thandal	Chabbewal (SC)	SAD
30	Charanjit Singh	Chamkaur Sahib (SC)	INC
31	Manpreet Singh Iyali	Dakha	SAD
32	S. Amarjit Singh Shahi	Dasuya	BJP
33	Sukjinder Singh	Dera Baba Nanak	INC
34	Narender Kumar Sharma	Dera Bassi	SAD
35	Tota Singh	Dharamkot	SAD
36	Arvind Khanna	Dhuri	INC
37	Aruna Chaudhary	Dina Nagar (SC)	INC
38	Balvir Singh	Dirba (SC)	SAD
39	Deep Malhotra	Faridkot	SAD
40	Tript Rajinder Singh	Fatehgarh Churian	INC
41	Kuljit singh Nagra	Fatehgarh Sahib	INC
42	Surjit Jayani	Fazilka	BJP
43	S. Parminder Singh	Firozpur City	INC
44	Joginder Singh Jindu	Firozpur Rural (SC)	SAD
45	Surender Singh Bhulewal	Garhshankar	SAD
46	Bibi Harpreet Kaur Mukhmailpur	Ghanaur	SAD
47	Amrinder Singh Raja Warring	Gidderbaha	INC
48	Darshan Singh Shivalik	Gill (SC)	SAD
49	Gurbachan Singh Babbehali	Gurdaspur	SAD
50	Gurmeet Singh Sodhi	Guru Har Sahai	INC
51	SUNDER SHAM ARORA	Hoshiarpur	INC
52	Shiv Ram Kaler	Jagraon (SC)	SAD
53	Joginder Singh	Jaitu (SC)	INC
54	Sukhbir Singh Badal	Jalalabad	SAD
55	Pargat Singh	Jalandhar Cantt.	SAD
56	Manoranjan Kalia	Jalandhar Central	BJP
57	Krishna Dev Bhandari	Jalandhar North	BJP
58	Chunni Lal Bhagat	Jalandhar West (SC)	BJP
59	Baljit Singh Jalal Usman	Jandiala (SC)	SAD
60	RANA GURJIT SINGH	Kapurthala	INC
61	Sarvan Singh Phillaur	Kartarpur (SC)	SAD
62	RAMANJIT SINGH SIKKI	Khadoor Sahib	INC
63	Gurkirat Singh	Khanna	INC
64	JAGMOHAN SINGH	Kharar	INC
65	Virsa Singh Valtoha	Khem Karan	SAD
66	Mantar Singh Brar	Kotkapura	SAD
67	Parkash Singh Badal	Lambi	SAD
68	Rajinder Kaur Bhattal	Lehra	INC
69	Surinder Kumar Dawar	Ludhiana Central	INC
70	Ranjeet Singh Dhillon	Ludhiana East	SAD
71	Rakesh Panday	Ludhiana North	INC
72	BALWINDER SINGH BAINS	Ludhiana South	IND
73	Bharat Bhushan	Ludhiana West	INC
74	Bikram Singh Majitha	Majitha	SAD
75	F. Nesara Khatoon	Malerkotla	SAD
76	Harpreet Singh	Malout (SC)	SAD
77	Prem Mittal	Mansa	SAD
78	JANMEJA SINGH	Maur	SAD
79	HARCHAND KAUR	Mehal Kalan (SC)	INC
80	Joginder Pal Jain	Moga	INC
81	RAJNISH KUMAR	Mukerian	IND
82	Karan Kaur	Muktsar	INC
83	Sadhu Singh	Nabha (SC)	INC
84	Gurpartap Singh Wadala	Nakodar	SAD
85	Gur Iqbal Kaur	Nawan Shahr	INC
86	Rajwinder Kaur	Nihal Singhwala (SC)	SAD
87	Ashwani Sharma	Pathankot	BJP
88	Amarinder Singh	Patiala	INC
89	BRAHM MOHINDRA	Patiala Rural	INC
90	Adeshpartap Singh Kairon	Patti	SAD
91	Charanjit Singh Atwal	Payal (SC)	SAD
92	Som Prakash	Phagwara (SC)	BJP
93	Avinash Chander	Phillaur (SC)	SAD
94	Charanjit Kaur	Qadian	INC
95	Gurcharan Singh	Raikot (SC)	INC
96	Sh. Sukhbinder Singh Sarkaria	Raja Sansi	INC
97	Hardyal Singh Kamboj	Rajpura	INC
98	SIKANDER SINGH MALUKA	Rampura Phul	SAD
99	Daljeet Singh	Rupnagar	SAD
100	S.BALBIR SINGH SIDHU	S.A.S. Nagar	INC
101	Sharanjit Singh Dhillon	Sahnewal	SAD
102	Surjit Singh Rakhra	Samana	SAD
103	Amrik Singh	Samrala	INC
104	Parkash Chand Garg	Sangrur	SAD
105	S. Lal Singh	Sanour	INC
106	Ajit Inder Singh	Sardulgarh	INC
107	Ajit Singh Kohar	Shahkot	SAD
108	Bibi Mohinder Kaur Josh	Sham Chaurasi (SC)	SAD
109	Bibi Vaninder Kaur Loomba	Shutrana (SC)	SAD
110	Des Raj Dugga	Sri Hargobindpur (SC)	SAD
111	Dinesh Singh (Babu)	Sujanpur	BJP
112	Sh. Navtej Singh	Sultanpur Lodhi	INC
113	Parminder Singh Dhindsa	Sunam	SAD
114	JEET MOHINDER SINGH SIDHU	Talwandi Sabo	INC
115	Harmeet Singh	Tarn Taran	SAD
116	SH. SANGAT SINGH	Urmar	INC
117	Hari Singh Zeera	Zira	SAD