News Delhi: The Election Commission of India is set to announce the dates of elections for the Maharashtra and Jharkhand assembly elections on Tuesday, October 15. The announcement on the dates of the crucial polls will be done by ECI through a press conference scheduled at 3.30 pm today. The poll officials are also expected to announce bypolls for three Lok Sabha seats and 12 Assembly seats of UP and Gujarat today along with the polls for the two assemblies.

When Do Assembly Terms End For Both States?

The Maharashtra Assembly’s term is set to conclude on November 26, while on the other hand, the Jharkhand Assembly’s term will end on January 5, 2025. Maharashtra has a 288-member Legislative Assembly, while the state of Jharkhand consists an 81-seat Assembly.

Crucial Battle In Both States

In Maharashtra, the ruling Mahayuti coalition, which consists of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), will face off against the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA). The MVA is a coalition of the Congress, the Sharad Pawar-led NCP-SP and the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT).

In Jharkhand, the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), a key part of the opposition INDIA bloc, will be up against the National Democratic Alliance (NDA). The NDA in Jharkhand includes the BJP, All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) and Janata Dal (United). Both states are gearing up for high-stakes elections, with major political alliances vying for power.

Congress Reviews Poll Strategy In Maharashtra

The Congress central leadership, on Monday, held a meeting to assess its preparations for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections. The meeting, chaired at party president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence, included senior state leaders and was attended by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.

During the discussions, the Congress leadership reflected on lessons learned from the Haryana elections, particularly focusing on addressing caste-related issues. The results of the Haryana elections and their potential impact on expectations within the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) alliance, which includes the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the NCP (Sharad Pawar faction), were also reviewed.

A key decision made during the meeting was the commitment to maintain the MVA alliance despite any challenges. Prominent Congress leaders like general secretary KC Venugopal and Maharashtra in-charge Ramesh Chennithala, along with state figures including Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee president Nana Patole, former president Prithviraj Chavan and Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar, participated in the meeting.

BJP To Release 1st List Of Candidates Soon

Meanwhile, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is preparing to release its first list of candidates for the Maharashtra polls, expected to include over 60 names. This list will be finalised by the party’s central election committee (CEC) in the next two days.

A meeting led by BJP national president JP Nadda and Union Home Minister Amit Shah was also held in New Delhi yesterday, where key leaders from the party’s Maharashtra unit and state election in-charges Bhupender Yadav and Ashwini Vaishnaw were present. The BJP’s Maharashtra unit has already shortlisted around 100 candidates, including sitting MLAs, for the CEC’s consideration ahead of the elections.

Sebi Whole-time Member Ananth Narayan G on Monday reminded investors that Indian equities have consistently delivered 15 per cent returns over the last 5 years whereas the same has been zero or even negative in China.

Terming the Indian markets “sone pe suhaga” for delivering higher returns for lower risks, Narayan also flagged a few areas of caution for investors and asked them to be conscious of the risks.

“There’s a lot of talk about China markets over the last few days. But over the last five years, while Indian markets have given around 15 per cent compound annual growth rate consistently, Chinese markets are nowhere close to that. It’s almost zero. In fact, in some cases, like in Hong Kong, it’s actually negative,” Narayan said.

Speaking at an event marking the start of the Investor Awareness Week at NSE, Narayan said FY24 was a “remarkable” year for India, with the benchmark indices returning 28 per cent and the volatility just 10 per cent.

“That’s like ‘sone pe suhaga’. It’s like the best of all worlds: low risk and very high return,” Narayan said, underlining that there are side effects of this as well.

Making it clear that it will not be the same going forward and investors should not assume it to be a one-way street, Narayan said such handsome returns can lead to complacency and pointed to a lot of youngsters opening up demat accounts to join the bandwagon.

Educating people about risks is very important, Narayan said, giving the analogy of driving a car. “There has to be a light push on the accelerator to get more investors to provide risk capital for the economic growth, we also need to be aware of risks and use the brakes if need be.” He said that 40 per cent of the small and midcap scrips have shot up by 5 times in the last five years, because of an imbalance between inflow of investor money and supply of new paper.

On its part, the capital markets regulator is trying hard to ensure that fund-raising clearances are done early so that there is a steady stream of quality paper supply in the market.

From a broader, longer-term perspective, Indian markets will only go north from here given the economic growth prospects in the country, Narayan said, issuing specific advice to investors.

Investors need to have the right intermediaries to capitalise on this opportunity presented by India, and not fall for the unregistered and fly-by-night ‘finfluencers’ who might be driven by vested interests, he said.

Using the oft-repeated idiom of “all roads lead to Rome”, Narayan remarked that Rome is not a traveller-friendly place and one may get scammed there as well. Therefore, it is important to seek advice from the right people for the investors, he said.

He also said that it is in investors’ interests to trade less and stay invested for longer for higher returns, and added that studies prove the same.

Sebi, which has flagged certain areas like derivatives recently, is not against speculation or participants taking short-term trades, but it would want investors to understand the risks, Narayan said.

Chairman and CEO, Railway Board, Satish Kumar today reviewed the progress of Special Campaign 4.0. A high level meeting was held through video conferencing from the office of Railway Board. The meeting was attended by General Managers of Zonal Railways, General Managers of Production Units, RDSO and Director Generals of Training Institutes along with MDs/CMDs of Public Sector Undertakings and senior officials of Railway Board.

During the meeting, the key goals of Special Campaign 4.0 were shared with the participants, which focused on several important aspects, such as furthering digitization efforts, improving cleanliness at campaign sites, clearing space, earning revenue through disposal of scrap and prompt resolution of public grievances especially through platforms like RailMadad and CPGRAMS. The Chairman and CEO emphasized the need for active participation at all levels to achieve these goals. The meeting directed the General Managers to personally monitor the activities of this campaign.

The Ministry of Railways has embarked on Special Campaign 4.0 with great determination and energy, which is being implemented across the entire Indian Railways network. The meeting also highlighted inclusivity as a key element of the Abhiyaan, with a special focus on ensuring participation of women and persons with disabilities. Additionally, adoption of best practices for work settlement was encouraged to accelerate efficiency and effectiveness. Special focus was laid on increasing the number of office spaces, expediting resolution of public grievances and promoting community participation through Rail Chaupals at railway stations across the country.

The meeting emphasized the importance of showcasing the achievements and activities of the Abhiyaan through social media, local news channels and press releases to increase public awareness and participation. Ministry of Railways is committed to implementing Special Campaign 4.0 in a comprehensive and effective manner, aimed at ensuring its success at a large scale.