| Good morning, The second of the five-Test England vs India series begins tomorrow. Team India has yet to announce its Playing XI, though whispers suggest Jasprit Bumrah, the world’s leading fast bowler, will probably sit this one out. This is part of a workload management strategy, which will see Bumrah, previously troubled by a long-standing back issue, play only three Tests. India may turn to Washington Sundar, an all-rounder, as a solution for weak bowling and a struggling lower order. Sundar practised with two senior spinners, Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav, at the nets on Monday, and even batted — all under the watchful eyes of Bumrah and head coach Gautam Gambhir. Interestingly, another all-rounder, Nitish Reddy, was also getting match-ready on Monday. National sports editor Sandeep Dwivedi, reporting from Birmingham, has all the details. On that note, let’s get to the rest of today’s edition.
🚨Big Story Indian negotiators have extended their ongoing stay in the United States to resolve the differences that are hindering the interim trade deal. The July 9 deadline for Donald Trump's reciprocal tariffs to return looms large over these talks. Quid pro quo: India has sought the elimination of reciprocal tariffs and guarantees of no future tariffs. It also aims to remove the US’s additional duties on goods such as steel, aluminium, and auto components. Notably, India has sought zero duty on electronic exports to the US, despite Trump's earlier criticism of smartphone companies selling products in America that are manufactured elsewhere. The US, meanwhile, wants to open up Indian sectors, including automobiles, whisky, and agricultural products. Point of contention: The US demand to access India's market to sell its genetically modified (GM) products and to remove a crucial regulation regarding dairy products has led to tense discussions and even triggered protests from voices back home.
⚡Express Investigation On the money trail: In 1,960 swift and silent transactions, a staggering Rs 3.72 crore was credited and Rs 3.33 crore debited, moving in and out of a single bank account linked to an obscure outfit: the Jeevika Foundation, based in East Delhi. Remarkably, not one of these transfers triggered an alert from the bank. This "mule" account now lies at the centre of at least six investigations by different state police forces, all tied to a growing web of digital arrest scams and cyber frauds. In Part 2 of our investigation, reporter Ritu Sarin interviews several bank officials to trace the money. Although financial institutions claim they conducted due diligence and adhered to KYC norms, the reality on the ground reveals a much darker story — one where warning signs were ignored and accountability was evaded. In Part 1, Sarin had detailed an illustrative case from Gurugram, where crores were moved in minutes through ghost accounts spanning the country. Read.
📰 From the Front Page Disposed: More than 40 years after the Bhopal gas tragedy, the process of relocating the 337 tonnes of waste from the now-defunct Union Carbide factory began only this year, on January 1. The matter was finally concluded on Monday, with the entire waste incinerated at a disposal plant in Pithampur. Connect: Bijapur, a sprawling 6,500 sq km district in Chhattisgarh, has been one of the hardest-hit areas by Left Wing Extremism. As defence operations against the Maoists intensify, the local administration has been given an additional task. Over the past 18 months, they have been working to bring villagers closer to the mainstream, one mobile tower at a time. The task has proven to be challenging due to Maoist resistance.
📌 Must Read The law of the land: The 42nd Amendment to the Constitution, enacted under the Indira Gandhi government, introduced sweeping changes to the document. Most of these were reversed by the 44th Amendment during the subsequent Janata government. The Preamble, which now included the words 'secular' and 'socialist', however, was left unchanged. Recently, the use of the word has sparked fresh debate, with Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar calling it a "sacrilege to the spirit of Sanatan". However, as my colleague Apurva Vishwanath explains, the Indian Constitution had long embodied the spirit of secularism even without the explicit mention. Thali index: Recent poverty estimates for India present a pretty optimistic picture. In most accounts, the calculation involves estimating the level of consumption expenditure sufficient for minimum calorie intake. But economists Pulapre Balakrishnan and Aman Raj suggest that this measurement may need revision. Their research shows that up to 40% of the rural population and 10% of the urban population could not afford two thalis a day in 2023-24. Read. 🎧 We discuss more about India’s poverty estimates in today’s ‘3 Things’ podcast episode. Tune in! Band, baaja, budget: In a land of extravagant weddings, the Ahir community in Gujarat's Bhuj is setting a counter trend. The community's supreme body has decided to do away with the "show-off" and "competition" during wedding ceremonies. To alleviate the financial burden on families and preserve the community's traditions, a new resolution imposes limits on clothing and gold expenses, as well as the food menu.
⏳ And Finally... Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate for New York mayoral elections, an Internet sensation and the chosen Gen Z messiah, has proven that a politician’s love life need not be a scandal or a secret. Mamdani has been candid about meeting his wife on Hinge and even made it a political issue. But more crucially, Mamdani tapped into the reality that young voters who meet partners online, build careers through LinkedIn, and organise communities via social media seek leaders operating in the same digital ecosystem. Read Vibha B Madhava’s super fun, yet insightful, ‘Fresh Take’. That’s all for today, folks! Until tomorrow, Sonal Gupta |
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