| Good morning, India entered the second Test of the England series with unusual team picks. The decision to leave out a seasoned player like Kuldeep Yadav, especially in the absence of fast-bowler Jasprit Bumrah, for a lesser spinner, Washington Sundar, has made one thing clear: Team India is looking to score runs and not take wickets. However, Shubman Gill, facing criticism for the puzzling selections, silenced the doubters with his bat. At the end of Day 1 in Birmingham, he remained unbeaten on 114 from 216 balls. As National Sports Editor Sandeep Dwivedi put it, it was truly worthy of being called a captain’s knock. Aside from Gill and his 99-run partnership with Ravindra Jadeja, the top order collapsed quickly. Much now rests on the reshuffled lower order. Also read: Is India’s decision not to play Bumrah and Yadav a smart punt or unwisely defensive move? Dwivedi writes. On that note, let’s get to the rest of today’s edition.
🚨Big Story The Election Commission (EC)'s revision of Bihar's electoral rolls, which will eventually cover the rest of India, has caused a stir in political circles. Ten Opposition parties of the INDIA bloc have written to the EC, stating that the exercise could "disenfranchise 2-3 crore voters in the state". They warned that people would struggle to produce documents required to prove their citizenship on such short notice. Notably, the "special intensive revision" began on June 25, and the final electoral roll will be published on September 30. Bihar is due for state elections before November. Challenges: In addition to the Opposition, BJP's NDA allies in the state have also expressed concerns over the exercise despite publicly backing it. Some wonder if the EC can complete the revision quickly, ensuring no genuine voter is left out. Others have flagged that voters may not be motivated to do the extra legwork of finding the documents since a voter ID was not linked to any government benefits. The process: Voters must fill out an enumeration form when a Block Level Officer visits their home. Those added to the electoral roll after January 1, 2003, must also provide proof of citizenship. The EC initiated this revision considering the large-scale additions and deletions to the electoral rolls in the last 20 years. The frequent migration of populations may have also resulted in potential duplicate entries.
⚡Only in Express The site of The Beatles' spiritual awakening, the Chaurasi Kutiya ashram, famously known as the Beatles Ashram, is due for a makeover. The revamp of the ashram, located inside the Rajaji National Park in Rishikesh, became a matter of departmental tussle, documents obtained by The Indian Express under the Right to Information Act show. The Uttarakhand Finance department had flagged the state Tourism department’s selection of Bimal Patel-led and Ahmedabad-based HCP Design, Planning and Management Pvt Ltd for the project. Though the Finance department eventually cleared it, it set certain conditions. Read on.
📰 From the Front Page No go: As it carves out a trade deal with Washington, New Delhi has set "red lines" on certain farm products on which it imposes both tariff and non-tariff restrictions on these goods. These include corn, ethanol, soybeans and dairy. My colleague Harish Damodaran takes a closer look at each of these sectors and why India may resist allowing greater access to the US. Cutting delays: Several files pertaining to inter-ministerial subjects like national policies and schemes remain pending with the central ministers. For the first time, the Cabinet Secretariat has sent letters to their offices, asking them to clear the backlog as soon as possible. Read up: Since the 1990s, Kerala has become India’s most literate state. Under the Centre’s 2022 literacy programme, Mizoram has pipped the southern state into India’s “first fully literate state”. How did the state achieve this milestone? Sukriti Baruah reports.
📌 Must Read Pool in? A land pooling policy in Punjab, which aims to pool over 40,000 acres of farmland for housing purposes, has run into trouble. Though the policy envisions voluntary participation from landowners, critics argue that it needlessly diverts fertile agricultural land for urban use. Read more about the policy and its criticisms. 🎧 For more details, tune in to today’s ‘3 Things’ podcast episode. Zooom…: Your bike taxis are safe for now! New guidelines from the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways have allowed states to permit the commercial use of non-transport motor vehicles. Ride aggregators like Rapido, Ola, and Uber have faced flak for using white-plate, privately registered motorcycles as bike taxis. However, customers have embraced the ride option for cheaper travel costs and reduced travel time in some cases.
⏳ And Finally... Sean 'Diddy' Combs, a hip-hop mogul, captivated the world's attention for the past few months for all the wrong reasons. Combs was arrested on several charges in September 2024 after two of his former girlfriends alleged that he forced them to partake in drug-fueled sex parties. A flurry of criticism — and memes — flooded the Internet in the months after. On Wednesday, Combs was cleared of the more serious charges of sex trafficking and racketeering, but was found guilty of lesser prostitution-related offences. Combs continues to remain in jail and faces a potential 20-year prison sentence. That’s all for today, folks! Until tomorrow, Sonal Gupta | 
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