tirupati l thursday l november 05, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 14 l anantapur EDITION Kohli in cruise control as India take 1-0 lead against Black caps Kamboj puts behind debut blues While Virat Kohli stole the show with a sublime fifty, Anshul Kamboj, with just two wickets, broke the match for India during the middle-overs. Arshdep Singh (4/70) and Gurnoor Brar (3/44) led the charts, but Kamboj, after a forgettable debut vs West Indies, stole the show with a mesmerising spell of 2/22 in 10 overs as NZ were all out for 185 Virat Kohli turned back clock, rising to the occasion in a rain-affected encounter to help visitors beat New Zealand. A look... vintage virat in full flow at eden park ■ ■ On an Auckland pitch that had lot of assistance for pacers, Kohli made a mockery of the hosts as he cruised to 51-ball 74, making it look like he was batting on a different surface Despite not having any game-time since the WI series, Kohli smashed 13 fours and a six in his stroke-filled knock | P13 80 It was Kohli’s 80th half-century in the odi format CHENNAI ■ MADURAI ■ VIJAYAWADA ■ BENGALURU ■ KOCHI ■ HYDERABAD ■ VISAKHAPATNAM ■ COIMBATORE ■ KOZHIKODE ■ THIRUVANANTHAPURAM ■ BELAGAVI ■ BHUBANESWAR ■ SHIVAMOgGA ■ MANGALURU ■ TIRUPATI ■ TIRUCHY ■ TIRUNELVELI ■ SAMBALPUR ■ HUBBALLI ■ DHARMAPURI ■ KOTTAYAM ■ KANNUR ■ VILLUPURAM ■ KOLLAM ■ TADEPALLIGUDEM ■ NAGAPATTINAM ■ THRISSUR ■ KALABURAGI Iran exempts Indian vessels from Hormuz transit curbs J aya n t h J a c o b @ New Delhi Iran has exempted merchant vessels from India, China, Iraq and Qatar from restrictions on transit through the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, with the move aimed at facilitating medicine imports from India, a senior Iranian lawmaker has said. Amir Hayat-Moghaddam, deputy chairman of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, said ships from the four countries were allowed to pass freely through the waterway and were not being intercepted by the United States. “We have currently exempted India, China, Iraq and Qatar from transit restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz. Ships from these countries pass freely and , the Americans do not intercept them either,” Hayat-Moghaddam told the Iranian Students’ News Agency (ISNA) in an interview on Tuesday . Explaining the rationale behind the exemptions, HayatMoghaddam said Iran was facilitating the passage of Indian vessels to enable the procurement of medicines from India. The exemption for Chinese ships, meanwhile, was intended to secure Beijing’s political support, he indicated. There was no immediate reaction from the Ministry of External Affairs or Iran’s Foreign Minister. But Tehran seems to be using selective exemptions from transit restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz to advance its diplomatic and economic interests amid tensions over the strategic shipping route and fresh threats from Donald Trump. MID-TERM ELECTIONS Senate 54 House of Representatives 7 Democrats 7 50 Not up for election 44 Republicans @ New Delhi IN a landmark decision, the Supreme Court on Wednesday set aside the poll disqualification of a former sarpanch for having more than two children, noting that laws prescribing such penalties have lost all relevance in moder n India. The court also referred the SC’s 2003 precedent-setting judgment on such laws to a larger bench. Mangala Bhimrao, former sarpanch at the Kakoda Gram Panchayat, was disqualified under Section 14(1)(j-1) of the Maharashtra Village Panchayat Act, 1959, following the birth 25 218 to win 25 139 Republicans Democrats Trump loses U.S. grip Democrats wrest control of both Senate and House of Representatives in mid- term polls AG E NCI E S @ Washington IN a major political setback to US President Donald Trump and the Republican Party, the opposition Democratic Party swept the mid-term elections by winning a majority in both the House of Representatives and the Senate and flipping key gubernatorial posts. Of the 470 Congressional seats for which elections were held on November 3, the Democrats won 282, according to the Associated Press race call. The Dems crossed the halfway mark of 218 in the 435-seat House with 228 seats, pushing the Republicans to 139, with 68 seats yet to be called. In the outgoing House, the Republicans had a slim margin of 220-215. In the 100-seat Senate—of which 35 went to polls—the Democrats now have a comfortable majority with 54 seats, while the Republicans have been reduced to 44. Republicans had a 53-47 majority in the out- First Muslim Senator has India connection Democratic US Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and his wife, Dr Sarah Jukaku, take the stage after he declares victory; and Los Angeles mayoral candidate Nithya Raman (R) dances with supporters at an election night event Wednesday | afp/ap going Senate. With an upper hand in Congress, the Democrats have effectively ended the Republicans’ hold on Washington and opened the window to block Trump’s legislative agenda and launch Congressional investigations over the remaining two years of his presidential term. The results are believed to indicate voters’ frustration with Trump’s policies, including the Express read CID cracks `15 crore crypto fraud, 8 arrested AP releases notification for 2,721 teacher posts Vijayawada: CID has cracked a major transnational cryptocurrency investment fraud involving approximately $1.5 million (nearly `15 crore), marking the first such breakthrough by the agency in the State. AP CID chief Ravishankar Ayyanar revealed that eight accused were arrested in connection with the racket | P3 Vijayawada: The School Education Department, which issued a brief notification on October 13 announcing the recruitment of 2,721 teacher posts through the Andhra Pradesh Teacher Recruitment Test-2026 (APTRT-2026), DSC-2026, released the Detailed Notification on Wednesday Poll bar on people with more than two children irrelevant, says SC S U CHITRA K A LYAN M O HANT Y 228 of her third child. The state law has imposed this restriction on candidates since September 2000. However, the bench of justices P S Narasimha and Alok Aradhe said the rationale for restricting democratic participation based on family size has crumbled due to demographic changes. In 2003, the SC had upheld the Haryana Panchayati Raj Act of 1994, validating the disqualification of local poll candidates with more than two children, in the Javed vs State of Haryana case. With the latest order finding it infructuous and sending the 2003 verdict for review to a larger bench, the court has opened the door to an overhaul of poll eligibility rules. Pronouncing the verdict, Justice Narasimha said, “The foundation of such laws, that is the fear of overpopulation, has crumbled due to demographic changes... We have explained how, from 2003 after Javed vs State of Haryana upheld such laws, India’s total fertility rate has fallen from 3 to 1.9. A total rate of 2.1, known as the replacement rate, would allow one generation to completely replace itself... the total fertility rate falling below the replacement rate would soon result in a demographic transition to an older population, with a declining share of the working population.” war on Iran, which contributed to rising living costs. Trump conceded defeat and congratulated the Democrats, saying he was ready to work with them. However, he refused to take responsibility for the debacle. In a social media post, he claimed the outcome would have been different had he been running. “I wasn’t on the ballot, and there was nothing that could be done about that. If I Progressive Democrat Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed (42), America’s first Muslim Senator, has an India connection. His wife, Dr Sarah Jukaku, a psychiatrist, has her roots in Karnataka’s Bhatkal. Abdul El-Sayed, of Egyptian descent, won against Republican Mike Rogers in Michigan | P9 was, we would have won,” he boasted on Truth Social. He also threatened to use his presidential veto power to strike down legislation passed by Congress. “I think they’re gonna want to work with me. Otherwise I’d just veto everything, and they’re not gonna want that,” he said. He later posted an image of a red cap bearing the word VETO on soP11, 12 cial media.  Prasant Madugula The Union Cabinet on Wednesday rewrote a key provision of the Agnipath scheme, giving two more years in uniform for 75% of personnel not retained after the initial four-year stint, along with another shot at becoming regular soldiers. It comes weeks before the first batch of Agniveers, who joined in 2022, is due to leave the armed forces after completing their four-year stint. The new “second engagement period” effectively creates a six-year pathway to regular military service for those willing to stay on and able to meet the selection criteria. The original provision for 25% of each batch to be absorbed on merit at the fouryear mark remains untouched. Announcing the decision, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General NS Raja Subramani said the scheme was “not set in stone” and would be reviewed periodically, adding that more tweaks could fol- Army personnel patrol along the Line of Control (LoC) in Akhnoor | PTI low. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh dubbed it a ‘Second Tour of Duty’. To sweeten the deal, the second tour comes with higher pay and a bigger Seva Nidhi package. Agniveers, however, remain outside the pension and gratuity net. Those enrolled as regulars after six years will rank below the 25% of personnel absorbed at the four-year mark, the CDS said. The push came from the ar med forces themselves. They had increasingly questioned the logic of showing the door to soldiers just when they had become operationally useful. E x p r ess Ne w s S e r v i c e @ Vijayawada Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu over the phone on Wednesday morning, and enquired about the situation in cyclone-affected areas of Andhra Pradesh. Naidu briefed Modi on the impact of Arnab and Murasu, and the damage caused by two cyclones within a week. He informed that farmers had suffered extensive losses due to heavy rains and strong winds. The cyclones caused significant damage to roads, power infrastructure and various other assets. He urged the Centre to extend appropriate assistance to Andhra Pradesh to overcome the cyclone loss, and support recovery efforts. Appreciating the AP government’s efforts in managing the Clear waterlogging: Naidu to officials Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu conducts an aerial survey of the districts hit by Cyclone Murasu on Wednesday | Express cyclone-related relief and response operations, Modi praised Naidu for effectively overcoming the challenges posed by the cyclones through continuous vigilance. It may be noted that Naidu is in constant touch with the Centre to ensure assistance to cyclone hit farmers for the crop loss incurred by them. He wrote letters to the Centre, and held discussions with several Union Ministers on ryots’ hardships. Naidu had already spoken to Union Home Minister Amit Shah four times, and ensured the immediate arrival of Central teams for the assessment of damage. The State govern- Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu conducted an aerial survey of Guntur, Bapatla and Prakasam districts on Wednesday to assess the damage caused by Cyclone Murasu. He directed officials to take steps to clear waterlogging in Karamchedu, Kothapatnam, Chirala, Chilakaluripet and Parchur ment had submitted a preliminary report putting the loss caused by Cyclone Arnab at `4,563 crore. The report states that 781 villages were severely affected by Cyclone Arnab, agricultural crops spread across 3 lakh hectares and horticultural crops across 13,600 hecP4 tares were damaged.  exam meets Naidu All set for MPTC and reforMS task force Members of the High-Powered Task Force on examination reforms, led by its Chairman Nandan Nilekani, met Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu at the Secretariat on Wednesday. HRD Minister Nara Lokesh welcomed Nandan Nilekani upon his arrival at the Secretariat | P4 Cyclones Arnab, Murasu narrow AP rainfall deficit Though the back-to-back cyclones Arnab and Murasu left a trail of destruction and loss across Andhra Pradesh, they have brought considerable rainfall to several parts of the State, helping it recover from a significant deficit recorded until the first half of October. Despite the substantial improvement, especially in coastal districts, the State still has a cumulative deficit of 24.93% as on November 4, with 12 districts remaining deficient. According to the districtwise rainfall data, Andhra J a v a r i a R a n a @ New Delhi Provide immediate Central aid: CM to PM silver lining U s h a Pe r i @ Visakhapatnam Early Diwali for Agniveers as def hire path opens Pradesh received 583.42 mm rainfall against the normal 777.2 mm between June 1 and November 4. The deficit had stood at 47% towards the end of October before Cyclone Arnab brought widespread rainfall, reducing it to 18% by October 30. Ten districts recorded surplus rainfall during October. The district-wise figures for October in the latest rainfall assessment show that AP received 138.15 mm against the normal 168.44 mm, leaving an 18% deficit for the month. The rainfall during November 1-4, however, was significantly above normal, with several districts re- ceiving multiple times their average rainfall for the period. The impact of the two cyclones is particularly evident in the coastal districts. During November 1-4, West Godavari received 238.42 mm against the normal 30.81 mm, registering nearly 674% excess rainfall. Konaseema recorded 192.58 mm against 46.74 mm, while East Godavari received 157.86 mm against 22.41 mm. Guntur recorded 169.03 mm against the normal 32 mm, and NTR district received 124.88 mm against 22.66 mm. Visakhapatnam also recorded 72.75 mm against the P4 normal 45.01 mm.  ZPTC elections today S V i s w a n at h @ Vijayawada The stage is all set for the conduct of Mandal Parishad Territorial Constituency (MPTC) and Zilla Parishad Territorial Constituency (ZPTC) elections in the State on Thursday In all, . 7,770 MPTCs and 582 ZPTCs will go to polls. All arrangements have been completed for polling at 31,460 centres across the State. Around 2.61 crore voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the MPTC and ZPTC elections. Nearly 2.52 lakh personnel have been deployed for the smooth conduct of local body polls. About 52,000 staff will be engaged in the counting process. State Election Commissioner (SEC) Anil Chandra Punetha has directed District Collectors and Superintendents of Police to ensure peaceful and transparent conduct of the MPTC and ZPTC elections, with special attention to areas affected by Cyclone Murasu. Holding a video conference with district of ficials on Wednesday, Punetha reviewed the rainfall situation, accessibility of polling stations, transportation facilities and preparedness of election personnel. Collectors informed the SEC that rain had subsided in most districts, and polling could be conducted without any major difficulty, except in a few locations. The SEC directed officials to continuously monitor weather conditions and local situation, particularly in cyclone-affected areas. Decision on any possible disruption to polling would be taken based on detailed reports from field-level officials, the SEC said. State Election Secretary A Mallikarjuna said special attention was being given to West Godavari, Guntur and Bapatla districts. He directed officials to strengthen videography and CCTV surveillance at polling stations, ensuring that voter secrecy is not compromised.  P4