The Hindu Crossword 8206 Solutions - by Vinod & Rajagopal

Across
1 Identify body odour to bring about beneficial impact from make-believe medicine (7,6) PLACEBO EFFECT (Identify=PLACE, body odour=BO, to bring about=EFFECT => PLACE+BO EFFECT)
10 Timid pose is contrived and taken full advantage of (9) OPTIMISED (Timid pose is contrived = ana. TIMID+POSE)
11 Call on Pak. spies in old Mumbai station (5) VISIT (Pak. spies=ISI, old Mumbai station=VT=>Pak. spies in old Mumbai station = V(ISI)T)
12 Irish cop is a bore in retrospect (5) GARDA (a=A, bore=DRAG=>a bore in retrospect=reverse of A+DRAG)
13 Luxury vehicle minus oil? Energy diverted (9) LIMOUSINE (minus oil Energy diverted = ana. MINUS+OIL+E)
14 Authority for travel, one sought after by aspiring politico (6) TICKET (Double Defn. - 1. Authority for travel 2. one sought after by aspiring politico)
16 Wet ground that is a cause for worry (5) BOGIE (Wet ground=BOG, that is=IE => BOG+IE)
19 Greet flying bird (5) EGRET (Greet flying = ana. GREET)
20 Endure, Teddy! Rise! (4,2) BEAR UP (Teddy=BEAR, Rise=UP)
25 Officer to join a group with fellow worker (9) COLLEAGUE (Officer=COL, a group=LEAGUE=>Officer to join a group = COL+LEAGUE)
26 Young swimmer, a little eel verily (5) ELVER (Container => eEL VERily..'a little' is the container indicator)
27 Send back the watch (5) REMIT (watch=TIMER, back the watch=reverse of TIMER)
28 Misra shops around for pithy maxims (9) APHORISMS (Misra shops around = ana. MISRA+SHOPS)
29 Civil defence official who gets busy when the siren goes (3-4, 6) AIR-RAID WORKER (Direct)

Down
2 Ability to read and write English with clarity perhaps (8) LITERACY (English with clarity perhaps = ana. E+CLARITY)
3 Mark gives pause to the reader (5) COMMA (Cryptic Defn. - Mark means Punctuation Mark)
4 Noisy activity ruined the French (6) BUSTLE (ruined=BUST, the French=LE => BUST+LE)
5 Selene's lover, beautiful man, would deny Moin's dilemma (8) ENDYMION (deny Moin's dilemma = ana. DENY+MOIN)
6 The one fancied to win (9) FAVOURITE (Direct)
7 American agency traps fool with a plant (6) CASSIA (American agency=CIA, fool=ASS=>American agency traps fool = C(ASS)IA)
8 Acquired by corrupt means (6) BOUGHT (Direct - bought as in bribed)
9 Article swallowed by queen — it benumbs (5) ETHER (Article=THE, queen=ER=>Article swallowed by queen = E(THE)R)
15 Whisk, for example, good one for rousing game (9) EGGBEATER (Whisk=BEATER, for eg=EG, good=G => EG+G+BEATER)
17 Big haze drifting around the north in Libyan city (8) BENGHAZI (Big haze drifting around the north = ana. BIG+HAZE+N)
18 Ironsides saver climbed up a fissure here (8) CREVASSE (Reverse Container => IronsidES SAVER Climbed )
21 Fried food's top in taste for a pedant (6) PURIST (Fried food's=PURIS, top in taste=1st letter of taste=T => PURIS+T)
22 Number with which to make a hit (5) SCORE (Double Defn. -> 1. Number (as in musical number) 2. make a hit)
23 Old students distributing UN mail (6) ALUMNI (distributing UN mail = ana. UN+MAIL)
24 Asinine vocal expression (6) HEEHAW (Direct)
26 To lose head in panic is a mistake (5) ERROR (panic=TERROR=>To lose head in panic = TERROR-T)