Mumbai: In one of the sharpest market crashes since the COVID era, Indian stock indices opened with a steep fall on Monday. The Nifty 50 plunged by 5%, opening at 21,758.40 — down by 1,146.05 points. Simultaneously, the BSE Sensex dropped by 3,984.80 points (5.29%), opening at 71,379.8.

Experts attribute the market carnage to a global selloff triggered by the US administration's recent economic policies. Ajay Bagga, a market expert, said India is facing the ripple effects of massive tariff hikes announced by former US President Donald Trump, which he termed as the "highest tariffs of a century."

Asian markets mirrored the downturn. Taiwan's index crashed 20% after reopening from a holiday, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell nearly 10%. Japan's Nikkei dropped 5.79%, China’s Shanghai Composite 6.5%, and South Korea’s KOSPI fell 4.14%. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 declined by 3.82%.

Indian financial experts called for urgent fiscal, monetary, and reform measures to shield the domestic economy from further fallout. SEBI-registered analyst Sunil Gurjar noted that Nifty's technical indicators show a bearish trend, suggesting more downside risk ahead.

Meanwhile, Brent crude prices hit a 52-week low, trading at $63.97, and US market futures indicated further weakness, with the Dow Jones down 2.22%.

Market watchers believe that without a rollback or easing of the tariff measures, global markets may continue to experience heightened volatility in the coming weeks.

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Bengaluru: A life convict lodged in Ballari Central Prison has successfully cleared the second PUC examination.

Ashok Kumar S, who appeared for the examination under prison escort, secured 481 marks out of 600, registering 80.1 percent. 

Director General of Police (Prisons and Correctional Services), Alok Kumar (IPS), shared the development on his official ‘X’ handle, commending the inmate’s achievement.

In his post, he stated that it was heartening to see a life convict score over 80 percent in the examination, adding that the inmate had appeared from Ballari Central Prison under escort.

He further noted that the achievement reflected that the “walls of the prison have not subdued his hopes for a better future.”

Alok Kumar in his post also shared the result sheet of Ashok. 

The Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board (KSEAB) declared the second PUC results for 2026 on April 9.

A total of 6,32,200 students appeared for the examination across all streams, of whom 5,46,698 passed, recording an overall pass percentage of 86.48 per cent.