Mumbai, March 2 -- The stock markets in the country tanked in the opening session on Monday as rising tensions and military escalations in the Middle East dented investor sentiment sharply.

The Nifty 50 index opened at 24,659.25, declining by 519.40 points or 2.06 per cent. The BSE Sensex opened at 78,512.05, falling 2,775.14 points or 3.41 per cent, reflecting heightened nervousness across domestic equities.

Market expert Ajay Bagga told ANI, "Markets are searching for some moorings in a deeply uncertain world today. Reports that the Iranian Foreign Minister said Iran is not going to block the Straits of Hormuz and that the new Iranian leadership wants to resume negotiations with the US lead to a slight recovery in risk assets from the...