Hailing the DMK as a “stable partner” of the UPA, the alliance’s presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee launched his campaign from Chennai on Saturday, even as RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav announced in Patna that his party would back “Dada”.

Chennaiites are likely to get water from the city’s second desalination plant by September-end. Works of the 100mld (million liters per day) desalination in Nemmeli would be completed and production s