Modi, netanyahu discuss Gaza, ties Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on phone, with the latter briefing him on the implementation of the Gaza peace plan. Both leaders reiterated their commitment to combating terrorism and strengthening the India-Israel strategic partnership | P7 Benjamin Netanyahu kannur l thursday l January 08, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l city EDITION Narendra Modi 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 Govt’s first advance estimate says services sector will drive growth GROWTH PROJECTIONS 7.40% 2025-26 6.50% 2024-25 2023-24 9.20% 8.0% 7.3% 7.60% india’s economy is pressing ahead amid external challenges, including punitive US tariffs, with the GDP projected to grow at 7.4% in the current financial year (FY26), government data released on Wednesday showed. The first advance estimate by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) pe gged the GDP growth in FY26 at 7.4%, up from 6.5% in the previous year. It is also better than RBI’s estimate of 7.3%, indicating the economy has not only surmounted the obstacles to growth but also emerged stronger. The growth is propelled by the robust performance of the services sector, which saw a 9.1% growth in real gross value added (GVA). Within services, the financial, real estate & professional services and public administration, defence & other services segments recorded a remarkable 9.9% growth at constant prices, data showed. Industrial sectors also performed better than expected with the manufacturing GVA in real terms growing at 7%, higher than 4.5% in the previous year. The secondary sector, comprising manufacturing and construction, is estimated to grow at 6.6% compared to 6.1% in the previous year, indicating steady industrial activity . 2022-23 The prosecution has accused the trial court of According to the prosecution, adopting a partisan and diswitnesses who supported its case criminatory approach in and deposed against Dileep and Sarath were deliberately disbelieved evaluating evidence in the to construct false narratives and 2017 actor abduction and asjustify their acquittal sault case, alleging that it applied different yardsticks It alleged there were clear when it came to key accused motives behind the unfair, Pulsar Suni and actor unsustainable and non-judicious acquittal of Dileep and Sarath Dileep. The court had last December acquitted Dileep, the eighth accused, saying the lines of the Supreme Court prosecution failed to prove that the trial courts are rethe charges against him be- quired to consider while yond a reasonable doubt. awarding sentences in gang However, in the legal opin- rape cases. ion it submitted to the govThe awarded sentences e r n m e n t — a c c e s s e d by amounted to bare minimum TNIE—seeking punishment, approval to file the prosecution press an appeal, the it clusive said, as to also prosecution acsought file cused the court an appeal on of adopting “double stand- this count. ards” and alleged that the An official told TNIE that evidence it presented was the government had recentappreciated in a “highly un- ly granted the nod and the fair, non-judicious, and par- appeal would be filed latest tisan” manner. by January 20. It said a large volume of As per the legal opinion, evidence against Dileep was while the court found Pulsar either ignored, misinter- Suni and five others guilty, preted, or deliberately mis- holding that the prosecution read to unduly favour him. had proven their guilt beThe prosecution also said yond a reasonable doubt, jail sentence and fine im- Dileep and three others were posed on Pulsar Suni and acquitted by applying a diffive others were shockingly ferent standard of evalua● More on P4 low and violated the guide- tion.  in fast lane 2020-21 ‘Witnesses disbelieved’ Unholy Maha micro pacts embarrass BJP, Cong S u d h i r S u r ya w a n s h i @ Mumbai D I PA K M O N D A L @ New Delhi -5.80% P R A M D A S @Kochi Economy to grow at 7.4% in FY26 despite tariff heat 9.70% Prosecution points to court’s Double standards 2021-22 Actor assault case Real GDP is estimated at J201.9 lakh crore in FY26 against J187.97 lakh crore in FY25—a growth of 7.4% The primary sector—agriculture and mining—showed moderation, with growth at 2.7% in real GVA terms compared to 4.4% last year. On the expenditure side, private consumption is expected to grow at 7% compared to 7.2% in the previous year. Investment, as reflected in gross fixed capital formation, is estimated to rise 7.8% compared to 7.1%. “India’s growth momentum has sustained despite elevated global uncertainty due to tariff tensions, riding on accommodative monetary and fiscal policies, robust corporate balance sheets, and favourable developments such as above-normal monsoons and low crude oil prices,” said Dhar makirti Joshi, chief economist, Crisil. Meanwhile, nominal GDP is projected to grow at 8% in FY26, Nominal GDP growth in FY26 Projected real GVA growth Growth in the services sector estimated at 9.1% Real private final consumption expenditure expected to grow at 7% reaching `357.14 lakh crore. This is lower than the budget estimate of 10.1%. “The lower nominal GDP growth has implications for GoI’s gross tax revenues (GTR). In the first eight months of the current fiscal, the realised growth of GTR was 3.34%. The relatively lower nominal growth combined with a relatively lower than budgeted buoyancy of 1.07 over the revised estimates of 2024-25 may result in lower revenue in 202526 than the budget estimates,” said D K Srivastava, chief policy advisor, EY India. MoSPI said a revision of the national accounts base year from 2011–12 to 2022–23 is underway, which may lead to updates in subsequent estimates. The second advance estimates for FY26 will be released on February 27, 2026. Unholy micro level political alignments became a major talking point after Maharashtra’s recent local body polls, embarrassing the BJP and Congress leaderships. At the Akot Nagar Parishad, BJP joined hands with Owaisi’s AIMIM to cut Congress and Prakash Ambedkar’s party out of the power matrix. In Ambernath, BJP did a deal with Congress to keep its NDA partner Shiv Sena led by Deputy CM Eknath Shinde out of power. In Ambarnath, Shinde’s Sena was the single largest party with 23 councilors, BJP followed with 1 4 , C o n g re s s had 12 and Deputy CM Ajit Pawar’s NCP 4. Yet, BJP’s Tejshashree Karanjule got elected as president because of the opportunistic alliance called Ambarnath Vikas Aghadi. The local BJP unit defended it, saying it was against the corrupt Sena, which was running Ambarnath for 20 years. In Akot, BJP formed the Akot Vikas Manch with the support of 23 councilors, including AIMIM. After public outcry, state BJP president Ravindra Chavan issued the show cause notice to its Akot unit. As for the Congress, it expelling its 12 corporators in Ambarnath and dissolved the local unit. express read Statement against homosexuality flayed Kozhikode: A statement made at a symposium organised by the women’s wing of the Kerala Nadvathul Mujahideen Markazudawa in Kozhikode, describing homosexuality as a threat to social stability, drew opposition from human rights groups and LGBTQ+ collectives who argued such views promote exclusion. “Describing any consensual relationship as a ‘threat’ to society is deeply harmful,” said an activist | P5 Cong leaders wary of relying on gold row T’Puram: Though they projected the Sabarimala gold theft case as a key political plank in LSG polls, there is apprehension within the UDF and Congress about continuing to raise the issue in the assembly election campaign. Some of the UDF constituents have cautioned that the issue may have lost its political traction and warned against overreliance on a particular controversy to gain electoral advantage | P4 LARGE, MID OR SMALL? MULTI CAP FUND IS FOR ALL! Scan to learn more about Multi Cap Funds An open-ended equity scheme investing across large cap, mid cap & small cap stocks Exposure across many sectors/industries SIP for life Suitable for long-term investors An Investor Education and Awareness Initiative SIP - Systematic Investment Plan | Visit https://www.hdfcfund.com/information/key-know-how to know more about the process to complete a one-time Know Your Customer (KYC) requirement to invest in Mutual Funds. Investors should only deal with registered Mutual Funds, details of which can be verified on the SEBI website (www.sebi.gov.in/intermediaries.html). For any queries, complaints & grievance redressal, investors may reach out to the AMCs and / or Investor Relations Officers. 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