PM congratulates Donald Trump on being elected as US Prez

New Delhi, Nov 9 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi today congratulated Donald Trump on being elected as US President, saying he looks forward to working with him closely to take Indo-US ties to a new height.

"Congratulations @realDonaldTrump on being elected as the 45th US President," Modi said in a tweet.

He said the country looks forward to working closely with Trump to strengthen bilateral ties.

"We look forward to working with you closely to take India-US bilateral ties to a new height," the Prime Minister said.

"We appreciate the friendship you have articulated towards India during your campaign, @realDonaldTrump," he said.

Trump today beat seasoned politician Hillary Clinton in the knife-edge polls, defying the odds to become the 45th US President.

Trump defeats Clinton in stunning White House upset

Republican Donald Trump stunned the world by defeating heavily favored Hillary Clinton in Tuesday's presidential election, ending eight years of Democratic rule and sending the United States on a new, uncertain path.

A wealthy real-estate developer and former reality TV host, Trump rode a wave of anger toward Washington insiders to win the White House race against Clinton, the Democratic candidate whose gold-plated establishment resume included stints as a first lady, U.S. senator and secretary of state.

Worried a Trump victory could cause economic and global uncertainty, investors were in full flight from risky assets such as stocks, and the U.S. dollar sank. U.S. stock futures dived 5 percent at one point, worse than the sell-off caused by the British vote to leave the European Union in June that wiped trillions of dollars off world markets.

Trump collected enough of the 270 state-by-state electoral votes needed to win a four-year term that starts on Jan. 20, taking battleground states where presidential elections are traditionally decided, U.S. television networks projected.

Trump, appearing with his family before cheering supporters in a New York hotel ballroom, said it was time to heal the divisions caused by the campaign and find common ground after a campaign that exposed deep differences among Americans.

"It is time for us to come together as one united people," Trump said. "I will be president for all Americans."

He said he had received a call from Clinton to congratulate him on the win and praised her for her service and for a hard-fought campaign.

His comments were an abrupt departure from his campaign trail rhetoric in which he repeatedly slammed Clinton as "crooked" amid supporters' chants of "lock her up."

At Clinton's election event at the Javits conference center a mile away from Trump's event, an electric atmosphere among supporters expecting a Clinton win slowly grew grim as her losses piled up.

Clinton opted not to appear at her event, instead sending campaign chairman John Podesta out to tell her supporters to go home. "We're not going to have anything more to say tonight," he said.

Clinton was expected to speak on Wednesday morning, an aide said.

Victorious in a cliffhanger race that opinion polls had forecast was Clinton's to win, Trump won avid support among a core base of white non-college educated workers with his promise to be the "greatest jobs president that God ever created."

In his victory speech, he said he had a great economic plan, would embark on a project to rebuild American infrastructure and would double U.S. economic growth.

His win raises a host of questions for the United States at home and abroad. He campaigned on a pledge to take the country on a more isolationist, protectionist "America First" path. He has vowed to impose a 35 percent tariff on goods exported to the United States by U.S. companies that went abroad.

Trump, who at 70 will be the oldest first-term U.S. president, came out on top after a bitter and divisive campaign that focused largely on the character of the candidates and whether they could be trusted to serve as the country's 45th president.

The presidency will be Trump's first elected office, and it remains to be seen how he will work with Congress, even though Republicans were set to retain control of both chambers. During the campaign Trump was the target of sharp disapproval, not just from Democrats but from many in his own party.

Television networks projected Republicans would retain control of the U.S. House of Representatives, where all 435 seats were up for grabs. In the U.S. Senate, the party also put up an unexpectedly tough fight to protect its majority in the U.S. Senate.

Text of Prime Minister’s address to the Nation

My dear citizens

I hope you ended the festive season of Diwali with joy and new hope. Today, I will be speaking to you about some critical issues and important decisions. Today I want to make a special request to all of you. You may recall the economic situation in May 2014 when you entrusted us with an onerous responsibility. In the context of BRICS, it was being said that the “I” in BRICS was shaky. Since then, we had two years of severe drought. Yet, in the last two and a half years with the support of 125 crore Indians, India has become the “bright spot” in the global economy. It is not just we who are saying this; it is being stated by the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.

In this effort for development, our motto has been ‘Sab Ka Saath Sab Ka Vikas’: We are with all citizens and for development of all citizens. This Government is dedicated to the poor. It will remain dedicated to them. In our fight against poverty, our main thrust has been to empower the poor, and make them active participants in the benefits of economic progress.

The Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana,

the Jan Suraksha Yojana,

the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana for small enterprises,

the Stand-up India programme for Dalits, Adivasis and Women,

the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Scheme for gas connections in the homes of the poor,

the Pradhan Mantri Fasal Beema Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana to protect the income of farmers,

the Soil Health Card Scheme to ensure the best possible yield from farmers’ fields,

and the e-NAM National Market Place scheme to ensure farmers get the right price for their produce

—these are all reflections of this approach.

In the past decades, the spectre of corruption and black money has grown. It has weakened the effort to remove poverty. On the one hand, we are now No. 1 in the rate of economic growth. But on the other hand, we were ranked close to one hundred in the global corruption perceptions ranking two years back. In spite of many steps taken, we have only been able to reach a ranking of seventy-six now. Of course, there is improvement. This shows the extent to which corruption and black money have spread their tentacles.

The evil of corruption has been spread by certain sections of society for their selfish interest. They have ignored the poor and cornered benefits. Some people have misused their office for personal gain. On the other hand, honest people have fought against this evil. Crores of common men and women have lived lives of integrity. We hear about poor auto-rickshaw drivers returning gold ornaments left in the vehicles to their rightful owners. We hear about taxi drivers who take pains to locate the owners of cell phones left behind. We hear of vegetable vendors who return excess money given by customers.

There comes a time in the history of a country’s development when a need is felt for a strong and decisive step. For years, this country has felt that corruption, black money and terrorism are festering sores, holding us back in the race towards development.

Terrorism is a frightening threat. So many have lost their lives because of it. But have you ever thought about how these terrorists get their money? Enemies from across the border run their operations using fake currency notes. This has been going on for years. Many times, those using fake five hundred and thousand rupee notes have been caught and many such notes have been seized.

Brothers and sisters,

On the one hand is the problem of terrorism; on the other is the challenge posed by corruption and black money. We began our battle against corruption by setting up an SIT headed by a retired Supreme Court judge, immediately upon taking office. Since then

• a law was passed in 2015 for disclosure of foreign black money;

• agreements with many countries, including the USA, have been made to add provisions for sharing banking information;

• a strict law has come into force from August 2016 to curb benami transactions, which are used to deploy black money earned through corruption;

• a scheme was introduced for declaring black money after paying a stiff penalty;

My dear countrymen,

Through all these efforts, in the last two and a half years, we have brought into the open nearly 1 lakh 25 thousand crore rupees of black money belonging to the corrupt. Honest citizens want this fight against corruption, black money, benami property, terrorism and counterfeiting to continue. Which honest citizen would not be pained by reports of crores worth of currency notes stashed under the beds of government officers? Or by reports of cash found in gunny bags?

The magnitude of cash in circulation is directly linked to the level of corruption. Inflation becomes worse through the deployment of cash earned in corrupt ways. The poor have to bear the brunt of this. It has a direct effect on the purchasing power of the poor and the middle class. You may yourself have experienced when buying land or a house, that apart from the amount paid by cheque, a large amount is demanded in cash. This creates problems for an honest person in buying property. The misuse of cash has led to artificial increase in the cost of goods and services like houses, land, higher education, health care and so on.

High circulation of cash also strengthens the hawala trade which is directly connected to black money and illegal trade in weapons. Debate on the role of black money in elections has been going on for years.

Brothers and sisters,

To break the grip of corruption and black money, we have decided that the five hundred rupee and thousand rupee currency notes presently in use will no longer be legal tender from midnight tonight, that is 8th November 2016. This means that these notes will not be acceptable for transactions from midnight onwards. The five hundred and thousand rupee notes hoarded by anti-national and anti-social elements will become just worthless pieces of paper. The rights and the interests of honest, hard-working people will be fully protected. Let me assure you that notes of one hundred, fifty, twenty, ten, five, two and one rupee and all coins will remain legal tender and will not be affected.

This step will strengthen the hands of the common man in the fight against corruption, black money and fake currency. To minimise the difficulties of citizens in the coming days, several steps are being taken.

1. Persons holding old notes of five hundred or one thousand rupees can deposit these notes in their bank or post office accounts from 10th November till close of banking hours on 30th December 2016 without any limit.

2. Thus you will have 50 days to deposit your notes and there is no need for panic.

3. Your money will remain yours. You need have no worry on this point.

4. After depositing your money in your account, you can draw it when you need it.

5. Keeping in mind the supply of new notes, in the first few days, there will be a limit of ten thousand rupees per day and twenty thousand rupees per week. This limit will be increased in the coming days.

6. Apart from depositing your notes in your bank account, another facility will also be there.

7. For your immediate needs, you can go to any bank, head post office or sub post office, show your identity proof like Aadhaar card, voter card, ration card, passport, PAN card or other approved proofs, and exchange your old five hundred or thousand rupee notes for new notes.

8. From 10th November till 24th November the limit for such exchange will be four thousand rupees. From 25th November till 30th December, the limit will be increased.

9. There may be some who, for some reason, are not able to deposit their old five hundred or thousand rupee notes by 30th December 2016.

10. They can go to specified offices of the Reserve Bank of India up to 31st March 2017 and deposit the notes after submitting a declaration form.

11. On 9th November and in some places on 10th November also, ATMs will not work. In the first few days, there will be a limit of two thousand rupees per day per card.

12. This will be raised to four thousand rupees later.

13. Five hundred and thousand rupee notes will not be legal tender from midnight. However for humanitarian reasons, to reduce hardship to citizens, some special arrangements have been made for the first 72 hours, that is till midnight on 11th November.

14. During this period, government hospitals will continue to accept five hundred and thousand rupee notes for payment.

15. This is for the benefit of those families whose members may be unwell.

16. Pharmacies in government hospitals will also accept these notes for buying medicines with doctors’ prescription.

17. For 72 hours, till midnight on 11th November, railway ticket booking counters, ticket counters of government buses and airline ticket counters at airports will accept the old notes for purchase of tickets. This is for the benefit of those who may be travelling at this time.

18. For 72 hours, five hundred and thousand rupee notes will be accepted also at

• Petrol, diesel and CNG gas stations authorised by public sector oil companies

• Consumer co-operative stores authorised by State or Central Government

• Milk booths authorised by State governments

• Crematoria and burial grounds.

These outlets will have to keep proper records of stock and collections.

19. Arrangements will be made at international airports for arriving and departing passengers who have five hundred or thousand rupee notes of not more than five thousand rupees, to exchange them for new notes or other legal tender.

20. Foreign tourists will be able to exchange foreign currency or old notes of not more than Rs 5000 into legal tender.

21. One more thing I would like to mention, I want to stress that in this entire exercise, there is no restriction of any kind on non-cash payments by cheques, demand drafts, debit or credit cards and electronic fund transfer.

Brothers and sisters,

In spite of all these efforts there may be temporary hardships to be faced by honest citizens. Experience tells us that ordinary citizens are always ready to make sacrifices and face difficulties for the benefit of the nation. I see that spirit when a poor widow gives up her LPG subsidy, when a retired school teacher contributes his pension to the Swacch Bharat mission, when a poor Adivasi mother sells her goats to build a toilet, when a soldier contributes 57 thousand rupees to make his village clean. I have seen that the ordinary citizen has the determination to do anything, if it will lead to the country’s progress.

So, in this fight against corruption, black money, fake notes and terrorism, in this movement for purifying our country, will our people not put up with difficulties for some days? I have full confidence that every citizen will stand up and participate in this ‘mahayagna’. My dear countrymen, after the festivity of Diwali, now join the nation and extend your hand in this Imandaari ka Utsav, this Pramanikta ka Parv, this celebration of integrity, this festival of credibility.

I am sure that all political parties, all governments, social services organizations, the media and indeed all sections of the society will take part in this with enthusiasm and make it a success.

My dear countrymen,

Secrecy was essential for this action. It is only now, as I speak to you, that various agencies like banks, post offices, railways, hospitals and others are being informed. The Reserve Bank, banks and post offices have to make many arrangements at very short notice. Obviously, time will be needed. Therefore all banks will be closed to the public on 9th November. This may cause some hardship to you. I have full faith that banks and post offices will successfully carry out this great task of national importance. However, I appeal to all of you to help the banks and post offices to meet this challenge with poise and determination.

My dear citizens,

From time to time, based on currency needs, the Reserve Bank with the approval of the Central Government brings out new notes of higher value. In 2014, the Reserve Bank sent a recommendation for issue of five thousand and ten thousand rupee notes. After careful consideration, this was not accepted. Now as part of this exercise, RBI’s recommendation to issue two thousand rupee notes has been accepted. New notes of five hundred rupees and two thousand rupees, with completely new design will be introduced. Based on past experience, the Reserve Bank will hereafter make arrangements to limit the share of high denomination notes in the total currency in circulation.

In a country’s history, there come moments when every person feels he too should be part of that moment, that he too should make his contribution to the country’s progress. Such moments come but rarely. Now, we again have an opportunity where every citizen can join this mahayajna against the ills of corruption, black money and fake notes. The more help you give in this campaign, the more successful it will be.

It has been a matter of concern for all of us that corruption and black money tend to be accepted as part of life. This type of thinking has afflicted our politics, our administration and our society like an infestation of termites. None of our public institutions is free from these termites.

Time and again, I have seen that when the average citizen has to choose between accepting dishonesty and bearing inconvenience, they always choose to put up with inconvenience. They will not support dishonesty.

Once again, let me invite you to make your contribution to this grand sacrifice for cleansing our country, just as you cleaned up your surroundings during Diwali.

Let us ignore the temporary hardship

Let us join this festival of integrity and credibility

Let us enable coming generations to live their lives with dignity

Let us fight corruption and black money

Let us ensure that the nation’s wealth benefits the poor

Let us enable law-abiding citizens to get their due share.

I am confident in the 125 crore people of India and I am sure country will get success.

Thank you very much. Thanks a lot.

Namaskar.

Bharat Mata Ki Jai.

Historic announcements on ending corruption and black money by PM; Five hundred and one thousand rupee notes will no longer be legal tender from midnight tonight

In a historical move that will add record strength in the fight against corruption, black money, money laundering, terrorism and financing of terrorists as well as counterfeit notes, the Government of India has decided that the five hundred and one thousand rupee notes will no longer be legal tender from midnight, 8th November 2016.

The Government has accepted the recommendations of the RBI to issue Two thousand rupee notes and new notes of Five hundred rupees will also be placed in circulation.

Notes of one hundred, fifty, twenty, ten, five, two and one rupee will remain legal tender and will remain unaffected by the decision today.

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi made these important announcements during a televised address to the nation on the evening of Tuesday 8th November 2016. He said that these decisions will fully protect the interests of honest and hard-working citizens of India and that those five hundred and one thousand rupee notes hoarded by anti-national and anti-social elements will become worthless pieces of paper.

The Prime Minister said the steps taken by the Government would strengthen the hands of the common citizens in the fight against corruption, black money and counterfeit notes.

Fully sensitive to some of the difficulties the common citizens may face in the coming days, the Prime Minister has announced a series of steps that will help overcome the potential problems.

Persons holding old notes of five hundred or one thousand rupees can deposit these notes in bank or post offices from 10th November onwards till 30th December, the Prime Minister announced. There are also some limits placed on the withdrawals from ATMs and bank for the very short run.

Shri Modi stated that on humanitarian grounds notes of five hundred and one thousand rupees will be accepted at government hospitals, pharmacies in government hospitals (with prescription of a doctor), booking counters for railway tickets, government buses, airline ticket counters, petrol, diesel and gas stations of PSU oil companies, consumer cooperative stores authorized by the state or central government, milk booths authorized by state government and crematoria, burial grounds.

Shri Modi emphasized that there is no restriction on any kind of non-cash payments by cheques, demand drafts, debit or credit cards and electronic fund transfer.

In his address the Prime Minister shared the insight into how the magnitude of cash in circulation is linked to inflation and how the inflation situation is worsened due to the cash deployed through corrupt means. The Prime Minister added that it adversely affects the poor and the neo-middle class people. He cited the example of the problems being faced by the honest citizens while buying houses.

A time-tested commitment to eradicate black money

The Prime Minister has time and again said that the Government is committed to ensure that the menace of black money is overcome. Over the past two and a half years of the NDA Government, he has walked the talk and led by example.

The very first decision of the Prime Minister led NDA government was the formation of a SIT on black money.

A law was passed in 2015 on disclosure of foreign bank accounts. In August 2016 strict rules were put in place to curtail benami transactions. During the same period a scheme to declare black money was introduced.

The efforts have borne fruit. Over the past two and a half years, more than Rs. 1.25 lakh crore of black money has been brought into the open.

Raising the issue of black money at the world stage

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has time and again raised the issue of black money at the global forum, including at important multilateral summits and in bilateral meetings with leaders.

Record growth in last two and a half years

The Prime Minister said that the efforts of the Government have led to India emerging as a bright spot in the global economy. India is a preferred destination for investment and India is also an easier place to do business in. Leading financial agencies have shared their optimism about India’s growth as well.

Combined with this, Indian enterprise and innovation has received a fillip due to the ‘Make in India’, ‘Start up India’ and ‘Stand up India’ initiatives that seek to celebrate enterprise, innovation and research in India.

The historic announcements made by the Prime Minister will add value to the already thriving efforts of the Central Government.

Sensex rallies 185 pts on FBI relief for Clinton

Mumbai, Nov 7 (PTI) Ending its five-session losing run, BSE benchmark Sensex on Monday recouped nearly 185 points on positive global sentiments as chances of Hillary Clinton in the US election brightened following a relief from FBI in personal email server probe.

The US elections and outcome speculation caused nervousness in global markets last week but the news of a reprieve, mere two days ahead of polls, for Clinton from FBI brought cheers for investors as the investigative agency did not find any material evidence for potential criminal charges.

Besides, domestic equities got a major push from covering-up by speculators, who had been creating short positions.

Vinod Nair, Head of Research, Geojit BNP Paribas Financial Services Ltd, said, "Market reacted positively to the outcome of US FBI's clean chit to the Democratic presidential candidate. Investors expressed an interim relief in the midst of escalating worry in the final lap of election battle. Further, short covering on pharma, bank stocks has also supported the rally." 

The Sensex opened gap-up at 27,552.27 and hovered between 27,591.15 and 27,398.72 before closing at 27,458.99, showing a gain of 184.84 points, or 0.68 per cent.

The gauge had lost 667.36 points in the previous five sessions.

The Nifty after shuttling between 8,535.85 and 8,481.45 ended higher by 63.30 points, or 0.75 per cent, at 8,497.05.

Buying activity was so strong that all the sectoral indices, except capital goods, ended in the green, rising by up to l.94 per cent.

Tracking overall trends, broader markets were also in better shape with the small-cap surging 1.19 per cent and the mid-cap index rising 0.59 per cent.



Foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) sold shares worth a net INR 343.30 crore on Friday, as per provisional data.

Globally, in the Asian region, Japan's Nikkei moved up 1.61 per cent, Shanghai Composite was higher 0.26 per cent, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng up 0.70 per cent.

European markets also joined Asian markets as Frankfurt's DAX climbed 1.71 per cent, while the Paris CAC rose 1.81 per cent in their initial deals. London's FTSE too surged 1.37 per cent. The US stocks futures too were trading in positive terrain ahead of Monday's market opening. .

Clinton, Trump in nail-biting finish to brutal US prez poll

Washington, Nov 7 (PTI) Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump today scrambled to make their final pitch to voters in the closely-contested US presidential race dogged by controversies like the Democratic nominee's email scandal and sexual assault allegations against her Republican rival.

As the countdown began for the most bitter and divisive presidential election in the US history, Clinton, 69, and her running mate Tim Kaine's campaign received a last-minute boost by news that the FBI had found no new troublesome emails in a review of the former secretary of state's private server and she will not face criminal charges.

"Based on our review, we have not changed our conclusions that we expressed in July with respect to Secretary Clinton," FBI Director James B Comey told Congress leaders in a letter after a renewed probe into her use of private email server as secretary of state following a cache of recently discovered emails.

Seeking to become the first female president of America, Clinton relieved by the latest development will end her campaign with a rally in the battleground state of North Carolina at midnight local time.

Republican candidate Trump will close his campaign with an event in Grand Rapids, Michigan, a state where he is hoping to pull off a huge surprise.

Trump, 70 called the vote tomorrow a final chance to turn back foreign forces menacing American identity, while Clinton said the country's long journey toward equality for women and minorities was at risk of being reversed in a day's balloting.

Trump claimed that he is leading in battleground States and is headed to win the White House race, much to the surprise of the pollsters and the media.

"You have to get everyone you know to the polls. We are going to win. We are going to have one of the greatest victories of all time. This is going to be Brexit times 50," Trump told cheering supporters in Leesburg, a suburb of Washington DC in Virginia.

"I think, we are up in Colorado. We are doing very well in Nevada. Doing really well in North Carolina. I hear, we are going to do very well in the State of Virginia. We are winning Florida. I think, we are doing very well in Pennsylvania," he said.

Trump promised a raucous crowd that he would end trade deals supported by "crooked Hillary", scrap the Affordable Care Act and dramatically restrict the arrival of refugees in communities that don t want them.

He also addressed rallies in Iowa, Colorado, Minneapolis, Michigan and Pennsylvania.

Clinton, meanwhile, campaigned in Pennsylvania, where she maintains a lead, and in Ohio and New Hampshire, two battleground states that could go either way.

"This election is a moment of reckoning," Clinton told a crowd in Manchester.

May joins Modi in seeking action against those backing terror

New Delhi, Nov 7 (PTI) British Prime Minister Theresa May today joined her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi in demanding strong action against those who support terrorism and provide sanctuary to its perpetrators after he voiced deep concern over cross-border terrorism, in an obvious reference to Pakistan.

The leaders called upon Pakistan to bring to justice the perpetrators of the November 2008 and 2016 terrorist attacks in Mumbai and Pathankot as May condemned the terror strike on the Indian Army Brigade headquarters in Uri in September.

As many as 19 soldiers were killed in the attack.

Terrorism and Indo-British economic ties were the key subjects at the talks here between Modi and May, who arrived last night on a three day visit to India, her first bilateral trip outside Europe since becoming Prime Minister in July after the Brexit vote.

The joint statement issued after the talks said they strongly affirmed that terrorism is a serious threat to humanity and reiterated their strong commitment to combating terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. They stressed that there can be no justification for acts of terror on any grounds whatsoever while agreeing there should be zero-tolerance to terrorism.

In an obvious reference to Pakistan hailing Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani as "martyr", the joint statement said, "There should be no glorification of terrorists or efforts to make a distinction between good and bad terrorists. They agreed that South Asia should be stable, prosperous and free from terror and called on all countries to work towards that goal." 

Modi and May also called for concerted global action against them "without selectivity". They pitched for urgent measures to counter and prevent the spread of terrorism, violent extremism and radicalisation.

The two Prime Ministers affirmed that the fight against terrorism should not only seek to disrupt and bring to justice terrorists, terror organisations and networks, but also identify, hold accountable and take strong measures against all those who encourage, support and finance terrorism, provide sanctuary to terrorists and terror groups, and falsely extol their virtues.

Addressing a joint press event with May, Modi said they discussed ways to purposefully work together to combat the growing forces of radicalisation and terrorism. "We agreed that it is not a limited security challenge. Its arc of threat spreads across nations and regions. Terrorists move across borders with ease, and endanger the entire humanity.

"I conveyed our deep concerns to Prime Minister May regarding cross-border terrorism and the need for the international community to take strong action against States that support and sponsor terrorism," he said.

On her part, May said the two countries face the shared threat of terrorism as individual countries, as partners, and as global powers and have agreed to strengthen cooperation in particular by sharing best practice to tackle use of internet by violent extremists.

Delhi smog: Rise in asthma, allergy, breathlessness cases

New Delhi, Nov 6 (PTI) Cases of severe breathlessness, asthma and allergy have sharply risen in Delhi as the city remains blanketed in thick layer of toxic air due to the worst smog in 17 years.

Doctors and experts say that besides spike in fresh cases, health complications have aggravated in people having a history of asthma, allergy or other related ailments.

"Earlier 15-20 per cent pollution-related ailment cases were reported at our hospital. But now these have gone up to 60 per cent.

"The most common problem is related to respiration. But this time we are seeing a rather large number of cases of severe breathlessness, coughing and sneezing and bronchiolitis due to the smog," says Dr S P Byotra, senior consultant and chairman of the department of medicine at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital (SGRH).

Bronchiolitis is inflammation of the bronchioles, the smallest air passages of the lungs.

"Children and elderly are the most vulnerable to infections and allergies due to smog and pollution. So, they should take extra care, and try not to venture during early morning and at dusk when the toxic level is highest," Byotra says.

Delhi is facing its worst smog in last 17 years, prompting the high court to observe that it was akin to "living in a gas chamber".

The Centre has termed it an "emergency situation" and called a meeting of environment ministers of all neighbouring states tomorrow to curb stubble burning by farmers.

According to experts, it is estimated that over 20 per cent of the world's population suffers from allergic diseases such as allergic asthma, allergic rhinitis and allergic conjunctivitis, atopic eczema and anaphylaxis.

"We are seeing a rise of 60-70 per cent in ailment cases related to pollution. Breathlessness, asthma, eye and skin allergies case have jumped. We are getting patients as young as a two-month-old baby who had bronchiolitis.

"People who had a history of or are predisposed to such ailments, such cases have also risen. Children getting affected more, as their immunological state is low. Besides, the infections are taking longer time to subside," says Dr Rahul Nagpal, Director and Head, Pediatrics, at Fortis Hospital in Vasant Kunj.

"Children should as far as possible avoid venturing out in the open early morning and late evening, and peak hours of the pollution. The number of cases have increased due to the smog in the last few days," says Dr V K Paul, pediatrician at AIIMS. .

I'm proud of my beautiful daughter: Big B

Mumbai, Nov 5 (PTI) Megastar Amitabh Bachchan says he is proud of her daughter Shweta Nanda, who walked the ramp, here last night for noted designer duo Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla's label "Jani Khosla".

The 74-year-old star shared his excitement on Twitter, calling Shweta- "the world's most beautiful daughter." 

"And the most beautiful daughter in the world walks the ramp for Khosla-Jani International... A very very proud Father...," he wrote.

Shweta donned a white gown with a small feather like crown on her head, which gave the star daughter a perfect angel look.

The event was also attended by Abhishek and Jaya Bachchan.

As Delhi turns into 'gas chamber', CM seeks Centre's help

New Delhi, Nov 5 (PTI) A thick shroud of menacing grey haze blanketed the national capital today as pollution level breached the safe limit by over 17 times at places, prompting Chief Minister Arvind Kerjriwal to describe Delhi as a "gas chamber" and seek the Centre's intervention.

Kejriwal appealed to people to minimise the use of private vehicles in view of the situation and switch to public transportation facilities.

The extent of pollution surpassed even the post-Diwali levels, while smog brought down visibility to around 200 metres across the city. Monitoring agencies recorded 'severe' quality air and advised people to avoid going outdoors.

Kejriwal told a press conference that the smog was mainly a product of raging farm fires in neighbouring Punjab and Haryana. Later, he raised the issue with Union Environment Minister Anil Dave in a meeting at the latter's residence.

While the 24-hour average of respirable pollutants PM 2.5 and PM 10 was 355 and 482 micrograms per cubic metre respectively, real-time figures were alarmingly high.

Anand Vihar, for instance, recorded PM 10 level at 1,711 micrograms per cubic metre at 2 PM -- around 17 times above the safe limit.

The safe limits of these ultrafine particles are 60 and 100 respectively. Even the level of gaseous pollutants like NO2 violated the prescribed standards for human inhalation as per real-time readings.

Lt Governor Najeeb Jung has also called for a high-level meeting on Monday to take stock of the immediate, short-term and long term measures, in which he invited Kejriwal, health minister Satyendar Jain, environment minister Imran Hussain, the Delhi Chief Secretary, and representatives of Police and the civic bodies.

Kejriwal said vehicle restriction measures like 'odd-even' scheme will not be able to bring down the smog as initial studies suggest that the "large-scale" influx of pollutant-laden smoke from Punjab and Haryana has aggravated the situation.

He said the Delhi government has very few methods at its disposal and the Centre needs to intervene.

"Pollution has increased to an extent that outdoors in Delhi are resembling a gas chamber. Prima facie the biggest reason seems to be burning of stubble in agricultural fields in Haryana and Punjab in huge quantity," Kejriwal told a press conference.

Shutting down of schools for a long time was not a feasible solution, he said, when asked about the decision of the civic bodies to keep schools run by it closed for a day in view of pollution. .