Lucknow: Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav launched a sharp attack on the BJP government, alleging that capable and honest officers have no value in the current system. Speaking in Lucknow, he claimed that those involved in corruption and irregularities are being favored, while efficient officers are sidelined.

Yadav urged officials not to take decisions in emotional distress, asserting that “better days are coming.” He said a future PDA (Pichhda, Dalit, Alpsankhyak) government would ensure dignity, proper roles, and respect for deserving officers. According to him, quality governance depends on skilled administrators who can deliver work within timelines.

He emphasized that the Samajwadi Party has always valued competent officers and will continue to do so. Yadav also claimed that both officers and employees who feel neglected are now aligning with the PDA vision to bring political change in the state.

Highlighting his slogan, he said, “Pain is increasing, that’s why PDA is growing,” adding that those who feel oppressed are naturally joining the movement.

He concluded by expressing confidence that the current regime’s “bad days” are nearing an end.

New Delhi, April 1: The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday registered a case against Reliance Communications Ltd (RCom), Anil Ambani, unknown public servants, and unknown others on allegations of causing wrongful loss of Rs 3,750 crore to Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) of India.

The case has been registered on the basis of a complaint received from Life Insurance Corporation of India Ltd. for offences of conspiracy, cheating, misappropriation, and offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act, according to an official statement.

It is alleged that LIC was fraudulently induced to subscribe to Non Convertible Debentures (NCDs) worth Rs 4,500 crore on the basis of false representations made by Reliance Communications Ltd. and its management regarding the financial health of the company, and security and asset cover offered to LIC while subscribing to the NCDs.

The LIC has made this complaint on basis of a forensic audit report dated October 15, 2020 conducted by BDO India LLP, which reported that RCom and its management had resorted to misutilisation of funds raised from banks and financial institutions, routing of funds through subsidiaries, misuse of sale invoice financing, discounting of fictitious bills, systematic siphoning of funds through inter-company deposits and shell related entities, creating and write-off of fictitious debtors and receivables and gross overstatement of security. There was a mismatch between the charges and the assets.

Investigation of the case is in progress, the statement added.

The CBI had earlier registered three cases against RCom Ltd, Anil Ambani, and others on allegations of defrauding a number of banks.

Anil Ambani was also interrogated by the CBI at its head office in Delhi for two days in a row in connection with the alleged Rs 2,929.05 crore SBI fraud case.

The CBI had registered an FIR on August 21, 2025, following a complaint filed by the SBI, in which Reliance Communications Limited, Anil D. Ambani and others, including unknown public servants, are accused.

The State Bank of India (SBI) is the lead bank in the consortium of 11 banks — Bank of India, Central Bank of India, UCO Bank, Union Bank of India, e-Corporation Bank, Canara Bank, e-Syndicate Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, IDBI Bank Limited, and e-Oriental Bank of Commerce that had extended loans to the Anil Ambani group.

The complaint is based on a forensic audit report that alleges large-scale diversion and misutilisation of loan funds through interlinked and circuitous transactions among group entities during the period 2013-17, resulting in wrongful loss of Rs 2929.05 crore to the SBI out of total exposure of Rs 19, 694.33 crores involving 17 public sector banks, according to an official statement.

Subsequent to the registration of the case, separate complaints were received from the Punjab National Bank, the Bank of India, the Union Bank of India, the UCO Bank, the Central Bank of India, the IDBI Bank, and the Bank of Maharashtra. Further, another case has been registered against Reliance Communications Limited, Anil Ambani and others unknown, including unknown public servants, on February 25 on the basis of a complaint dated February 24, received from the Bank of Baroda, which includes exposure of e-Dena Bank and e-Vijaya Bank.

Mumbai: witnessed a pleasant change in weather on Wednesday morning, as cloudy skies and gentle winds brought much-needed relief from recent smog and rising pollution levels. Visuals from Nariman Point and Marine Drive showed overcast conditions, while the early morning temperature settled at around 26°C, accompanied by a noticeable improvement in air quality across several parts of the city.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the city is expected to experience partly cloudy conditions through the day, with the possibility of thunderstorms and lightning. Temperatures are likely to range between 26°C and 34°C.

The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC), Mumbai, has issued a yellow alert for the city and surrounding regions, warning of thunderstorms accompanied by lightning, light to moderate rainfall, and gusty winds reaching speeds of 30–40 kmph at isolated locations. Weather officials have indicated that light rain and thundershowers are likely to persist till April 2.

The sudden shift in weather comes at a time when large parts of Maharashtra have been placed on alert for lightning, gusty winds, rainfall and even hailstorms over the next few days.

Meanwhile, Mumbai’s air quality has shown a marked improvement. Data from monitoring platforms recorded the city’s overall Air Quality Index (AQI) at 31 in the early hours, placing it in the ‘good’ category. This follows an even better reading of 21 recorded a day earlier, also in the ‘good’ range, offering major relief to residents after weeks of poor air conditions.

The improvement is largely due to the recent action taken by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) against construction sites violating pollution control norms. Both private and public infrastructure projects were targeted as part of the drive to curb dust pollution.

However, the improvement in air quality has not been uniform across the city. Mumbai Central emerged as a pollution hotspot, recording an AQI of 143, categorised as ‘poor’, followed by Malad West at 123, also in the ‘poor’ range.

Meanwhile, several areas reported significantly cleaner air. Gamdevi recorded an AQI of 8, while Andheri also reported 8. Ghatkopar West and Walkeshwar recorded AQI levels of 13 each, and Kandivali West stood at 17, all within the ‘good’ category.

As per standard AQI classifications, values between 0 and 50 are considered ‘good’, 51 to 100 ‘moderate’, 101 to 200 ‘poor’, 201 to 300 ‘unhealthy’ and above 300 ‘severe’.