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India's core sector output in February grew to the highest level in the past five months, adding some weight to the belief that the third-largest Asian economy is gradually getting rid of sluggishness.

According to the index of industrial production (IIP), core industries' output grew 4.5 per cent in February. It was considerably up from January's growth figure of 1.6 per cent.

India's core sector includes eight industries, viz. fertilisers, electricity, cement, steel, coal, crude oil, petroleum refinery products and natural gas.

The growth of Indian economy is poised to pick up pace this year but it may take some more time for the South Asian economy to reach its peak potential growth rate, Asian Development Bank (ADB) said in its latest report.

According to ADB's fresh estimates, India's gross domestic product (GDP) will likely grow 5.5 per cent in FY2014-15. The estimated growth figure is well above India's Central Statistical Office's estimated growth rate of 4.9 per cent for the recently concluded financial year (2013-14).

Chennai, April 1 : Automobile manufacturer Hyundai Motor India Tuesday reported an 8.4 percent fall in its total sales for March at 51,708 units from 56,437 units in the corresponding month of last year.

In a statement, the company said its domestic sales during the month under review grew by 3.4 percent and stood at 35,003 units -- up from 33,858 units sold in March 2013.

Bangalore, April 1 : Indian astrophysicist Abhas Mitra, at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Mumbai, who had once challenged the Black Hole theory of Britain's famed Stephen Hawking is in the limelight again.

Mitra's earlier research had claimed that the so-called "Black Holes" must be grey-holes and not exact black holes, and the so-called "Dark Energy" -- a topic of Physics Nobel in 2011 -- must be an artifact rather than a real entity.

His views remain uncontested till now.

London, April 1 : If you often pop up anti-anxiety and sleeping pills, beware! A research from the University of Warwick has found that these are linked to an increased risk of death.

The study shows that several anxiolytic (anti-anxiety) drugs or hypnotic drugs (sleeping pills) are associated with doubling the risk of mortality.

Although these findings are based on routine data and need to be interpreted cautiously, the researchers recommended that a greater understanding of their impact is essential.

Chennai, April 1 : Two- and three