Moscow Belarus Russia Fuel truck exploded at an air base in Ryazan kyiv ukraine Romania bhubaneswar l tuesday l december 06, 2022 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l jeypore EDITION Mysterious blasts hit two Russian military air bases Explosion in the area of the Engels air base Attack kills Three servicemen, injures six RIA Novosti news agency said three servicemen were killed and six others injured when a fuel truck exploded at an air base in Ryazan in western Russia. A plane was also reportedly damaged in the blast. The base houses long-range flight tankers that serve to refuel bombers in the air. There were also reports of another explosion at the Engels air base in the Saratov region One explosion happened at a base housing nuclear-capable bombers that have been involved in launching strike on Kyiv Moscow steps up strike against Kyiv ■ ■ The Engels air base houses Tu-95 and Tu-160 strategic bombers that have been involved in launching strikes on Ukraine. Those bombers are capable of carrying nuclear weapons Meanwhile, Russia on Monday stepped up its attack against Ukraine, leading to explosions in many parts of the country | P11 60 of the 70 missiles fired by Moscow shot down on Monday, says Kyiv CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI HP race tight, BJP sweep in Guj: Exit poll P r e e t h a N a i r @ New Delhi The BJP appears headed for a record victory in the Gujarat Assembly elections while the race in Himachal Pradesh could be unexpectedly tight, if the poll of exit polls is any indicator. Exit poll results came out in the evening after the last phase Gujarat Assembly elections ended on Monday . Pollsters were unanimous in predicting a clean sweep for the BJP in Gujarat, with the Congress finishing a distant second. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) could consider itself lucky if it crosses single digits. If the BJP wins, it would be a record seventh successive ter m for it in Gujarat. However, the Congress appears to have given the BJP a run for its money in Himachal Pradesh, exit polls suggest. Counting of votes will take place on December 8. The poll of exit polls gave 132 seats to the BJP in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly with the Congress and its allies trailing at 38. If the projection holds, it mcd polls 250 126 Total wards Poll Simple majority BJP CONG AAPOTH Aaj Tak-Axis My India 69-91 3-7 149-171 5-9 News X- Jan Ki Baat 70-92 04-07 159-175 01 Times Now-ETG 84-94 6-10 146-156 0-4 Zee News-BARC 82-94 8-14 134-146 14-19 Poll of polls 84 7 154 5 27 48 10 Present position 181 Gujarat AAP to trounce BJP in Delhi local body polls A N U P VER M A @ New Delhi would be a huge blow for the Congress, which secured 77 seats in the 2017 Assembly elections. Its lacklustre performance could affect its morale at a time when it is looking to build up some steam ahead of the 2024 general elections. Congress leaders had claimed the party it will win despite its low key campaign in the state. As for the AAP, its high voltage campaign may not have commensurate results on the ground in Gujarat, with BJP being the big beneficiary . In Himachal Pradesh, the BJP could get to retain power, through with a razor thin margin, as the poll of polls gave it 35 seats, which is also the majority mark in the 68-member Assembly The Congress could . end up with 30 seats while it will be a noshow for the AAP . However, two exit polls showed a dead heat between the BJP and the Congress in the state, where results could go either way According to the Chanakya exit poll, . it will be a cliffhanger as both the BJP and the Congress may secure 33 seats each. The India-Today Axis poll gave the Congress an edge with 30-40 seats. Himachal Total seats: 182 | Simple majority: 92 Record turnout of 80.05 pc in Padampur bypoll Express News Service THE Bharatiya Janata Party’s 15-year rule at the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) is set to come to an end, with four exit polls predicting a clear win for the Aam Aadmi Party . After the recently completed delimitation exercise, the total number of MCD wards was reduced to 250 from 272. According to poll of polls, the AAP may win 154 of the 250 wards that were up for grabs. The party had got 48 in the last elections. The BJP, which currently has 181 seats, may find itself with just 84 this time, while the Congress’ tally may shrink to 7 from 27 (see table). If the exit polls prove right, the AAP will have complete control over many sectors such as sanitation and garbage management, community services, public health, veterinary, primary education, property tax, advertisement, toll tax, licensing (health & trade), factory licensing, architecture & town planning, engineering, labour welfare, building, environmental management, remunerative projects, horticulture, engineering, land & estate, etc. Total seats: 68 | Simple majority: 35 Poll BJP CONG+NCP AAP OTH Republic TV P-MARQ 128-148 30-42 2-10 0-3 Poll BJP CONG AAP OTH Republic TV P-MARQ 34-39 28-33 0-1 1-4 Aaj Tak-Axis My India 129-151 16-30 9-21 2-6 Times Now-ETG 135-145 24-34 6-16 1-3 Aaj Tak-Axis My India 24-34 30-40 0 4-8 Times Now-ETG 34-42 24-32 0 1-3 ABP News-CVoter 128-140 31-43 3-11 2-6 TV9 Gujarati 125-130 40-50 3-5 3-7 ABP News-CVoter 33-41 24-32 0 0-4 TV9 Gujarati 33 31 0 4 India TV-Matrize 112-121 4-7 1-3 Zee News-BARC 110-125 45-60 1-5 0-4 India TV-Matrize 35-40 26-31 0 0-3 Zee News-BARC 35-40 20-25 0-3 1-5 4 News 24-Today’s Chanakya 33 33 0 2 Poll of exit polls 35 30 0 3 News X- Jan Ki Baat 32-40 27-34 0 1-2 Present position 44 21 0 51-61 News 24-Today’s Chanakya 150 19 11 2 Poll of exit polls 132 38 8 News X- Jan Ki Baat 34-51 6-13 1-2 Present position 111 63 00 117-140 @ Bargarh/Bhubaneswar PADAMPUR bypoll witnessed a record turnout of 80.05 per cent on Monday, leaving political parties guessing about such behaviour of the voters. Official sources said the polling percentage will increase by the time the figures are finalised even as the main rivals BJD and BJP claimed that such a high turnout will go in their favour. The ruling BJD stated that the party’s mobilisation of voters has succeeded with the record turnout, while the BJP sources maintained that high polling was spontaneous and result of anti-incumbency votes. However, a sense of uncertainty among the parties was very much evident. High voters’ turnout, though, is nothing new for Padampur Assembly constituency as in the last three elections more than 75 per cent polling was recorded. In the 2019 Assembly election which recorded 79.16 per cent turn out, BJD’s Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha, father of the ruling party candidate, Barsha Singh Bariha had defeated BJP’s Pradip Purohit by a margin of over 5,700 votes. In the 2014 elections, voter turnout was 79.16 percent. But An ailing elderly man reaches a booth on a wheelchair to cast his vote | Express in this election, Purohit had defeated his rival Bariha of the BJD by a margin of over 4,500 votes. In the 2009 election too, the constituency witnessed polling of 75.5 per cent. The seat was won by Bariha. But this time the nearest candidate was Satya Bhusan Sahu of the Congress. Purohit, the BJP candidate, had finished third behind Congress. Despite the pre-election heat during the campaigning period, polling was by and large peaceful. There was no report of booth capturing and rigging. “There was no report of any untoward incident in the entire Padampur Assembly constituency during the voting process,” chief electoral officer SK Lohani told mediapersons here. Counting of votes will be held on December 8.