The Hindu Crossword 8260 Solutions - by Vinod & Rajagopal

Back after a brief hiatus - a well-deserved, well-meaning and fruitful break

Across
1 What is recommended for restful retirement — livestock census? (8,5) COUNTING SHEEP (Cryptic Defn. - livestock=SHEEP, census=COUNTING)
10 Of necessity, requires mould (5,4) NEEDS MUST (requires=NEEDS, mould=MUST)
11 Vessel brings honour in river on return trip (5) YACHT (honour=CH, river=TAY=>river on return trip=YAT=>honour in river on return trip = YA(CH)T)
12 Chair's hammer yielded a bit of lead (5) GAVEL (yielded=GAVE, bit of lead=L => GAVE+L)
13 Egyptian queen was free in it, travelling with tempo (9) NEFERTITI (free in it, travelling =ana. FREE+IN+IT=NEFERITI=>free in it, travelling with tempo=NEFERITI with T)
14 Woollen clothes for a skinny chap in the Theosophical Society (6) TWEEDS (skinny chap=WEED, Theosophical Society=TS=>a skinny chap in the Theosophical Society = T(WEED)S)
16 Distinction shown by a Conservative girl (5) CLASS (Conservative=C, girl=LASS => C+LASS)
19 Small market that is fashionable (5) SMART (Small=S, market=MART => S+MART)
20 Such action cannot be voluntary (6) FORCED (Direct)
25 Unshaved growth has necessarily to be a source of pain, absorbing Oxygen (9) MOUSTACHE (necessarily=MUST, to be a source of pain=ACHE, Oxygen=O=>M(O)UST+ACHE)
26 The toast of Moscow (5) VODKA (Direct)
27 Deposits found when the girl got in (5) ASHES (when=AS, the girl=SHE=>when the girl got in = A(SHE)S)
28 Parliamentary Commissioner gets a thousand little flowers in a Middle Eastern state (9) OMBUDSMAN (thousand=M, little flowers=BUDS, Middle Eastern state=OMAN=>O(M+BUDS)MAN)
29 Accommodation on train for trainer not on the qui vive? (8,5) SLEEPING COACH (trainer=COACH, not on the qui vive=not alert=SLEEPING)

Down
2 General description concerning a scene (8) OVERVIEW (concerning=OVER, a scene=VIEW => OVER+VIEW)
3 Part of the mien as also the nose (5) NASAL (Container => mieN AS ALso)
4 Lizard from Antigua, wild, losing front of tail (6) IGUANA (ana. ANTIGUA - T(front of tail))
5 Oversize page at the entrance, female, advanced in years (8) GATEFOLD (entrance=GATE, female=F, advanced in years=OLD => GATE+F+OLD)
6 In poetry she spells out magic words (3,6) HEY PRESTO (poetry she spells out = ana. POETRY+SHE)
7 Clue: ID is changed for geometrician (6) EUCLID (Clue: ID is changed = ana. CLUE+ID)
8 Man on board in the dark, reportedly (6) KNIGHT (homonym of NIGHT=dark)
9 Sober way to give assistance (5) STAID (way=ST, to offer help=AID => ST+AID)
15 Half a cup of coffee (9) DEMITASSE (Direct)
17 British officer with another one gets vegetable (8)
18 Member of college is of purely theoretical interest (8)
21 Kashmiri not available for a protest in India (6) DHARNA (
22 Slanderous attack in manuscript upset listener (5) SMEAR (manuscript=MS=>manuscript upset=SM, listener=EAR => SM+EAR)
23 Measure of a President followed by the Spanish (6) BUSHEL (a President=BUSH, the Spanish=EL=>BUSH+EL)
24 It is part of the garden, a listening device for a bloodsucker (6) BEDBUG (part of the garden=BED, a listening device=BUG => BED+BUG)
26 Electronic device to look at love (5) VIDEO (too look at=VIDE, love=O => VIDE+O)