BHUBANESWAR l tuesday l july 14, 2026 l `9.00 l PAGES 12 l late CITY EDITION Her-story: India crush England in first-ever women’s test at Lord’s Tale of many firsts at home of cricket While the occasion itself will remain historic — first women’s Test at Lord’s in 142 years — India women dominated the proceedings on the field. Kranti Gaud from Ghuwara, Madhya Pradesh became the first woman to get on Lord’s Test honours board with a fifer. Yastika Bhatia is first woman to score a Test ton at the venue as India crushed England in every department Harmanpreet Kaur and Co beat hosts England by a mammoth 270 runs in the historic one-off women’s Test at the iconic venue. A look An advertisement for more women’s Tests ■ ■ Though England failed across departments, Kaur and her band of women showed why they deserve to play more Test matches. Their next one will be in South Africa later this year This was India women’s seventh Test match since 2021. Prior to that, they last played a Test in 2014 | P11 2 India have lost only two of the last 19 Tests since 1996 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 Clash of styles in first semis Spain stand between France and a third consecutive World Cup final. A look at the semifinal clash... Eyes on Mbappe Kylian Mbappe, the French captain, has dazzled with his quick feet, running and finishing. He has had a hand in 11 goals (eight strikes and three assists) and is odds on to add to that tally | P15 Today’s match Spain’s use of the ball Spain are a bit more methodical in their play. They will have more of the ball and they are built in the image of their own leader, Rodri. Their midfield will be a big reference point France vs Spain 12.30 AM* (IST Wednesday) Live on Unite8 and Zee5 Trump’s latest: 20% Hormuz toll ‘Not for confrontation with Centre’ Odisha seeks NOC for monitoring system at Saradihi, C’sgarh mum E X P R E SS N E WS S E RVIC E @ T’Puram IN a stark difference from its predecessor, the newly assumed Congress government in Kerala has decided not to adopt a confrontational path with the Centre. In an exclusive interview with TNIE Editor Santwana Bhattacharya on Monday, Chief Minister V D Satheesan, however, made it clear that the UDF government will continue the political and ideological fight. In his first major interview after assuming office, Satheesan also rejected the CPM’s criticism that he had been going soft on the BJP-led Union govern- speech I said our devolution is ment, saying he doesn’t intend dipping. In the 10th Finance to declare war against the Commission, we had 3.5%. In Centre. the 15th, it was 1.9%. The 15th “It’s not my job... Whenever Finance Commission granted there are issues, we will try to `55,000 crore as revenue deficit sort it out. I have made courtesy grant, but it’s not there now,” he calls to the prime minister, the said. Maintaining that the state home minister, the finance min- would prefer to have cordial reister and the minister for ports,” lations with the Centre, Satheehe said. san asserted that there will be Satheesan, who no compromise with anyone trypress ing to spread communal clusive a l s o h o l d s the finance poison. por tfolio, “We’ll fight over political issaid there are occasions sues. On core issues, we align t o p re s e n t t h e with the AICC stance. We state’s case before have taken a the GST countough secular cil and NITI stand,” the Aayog. “In chief minister VD Satheesan, kerala cm my (budget) underlined.  P5 War fallout pushes retail inflation above RBI Assam issue target of 4% to 18-mth high of 4.38% in June DI PAK M ONDAL @ New Delhi ON a day government data showed the protracted Iran war was hurting the Indian economy, US President Donald Trump reinstated the naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz and announced a 20% toll that transiting ships must pay for their “safety and security”. Iranian ships will not be allowed, Trump said while claiming the US has taken over the strait as its “guardian”. “We are reinstating THE IRANIAN BLOCKADE, so named because it is only stopping Iran’s ships or customers from entering or leaving,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, adding: “All other countries will have fair and open use of the Strait.” The fresh developments could push up global oil prices and add to uncertainty in the equity markets. On Monday India’s retail in, flation shot up to an 18-month high of 4.38% in June, breaching the Reserve Bank of India’s 4% target for the first time since January 2025, as the fallout of the Iran conflict, higher fuel prices and a sharp rise in food costs pushed up prices across the economy . Government data showed the US steps up attacks on Iranian targets The US and Iran continued to exchange strikes on Monday. US Central Command (Centcom) said it has hit a submarine and Iranian ship maintenance facility overnight, in response to Iran targeting commercial ships in the Strait of Hormuz | P9 Consumer Price Index (CPI)based inflation rose from 3.94% in May to 4.38% in June. The surge was driven by both food and non-food components, with transport and restaurant prices reflecting the pass-through of higher petrol, diesel, and commercial LPG prices. Food inflation contributed 185 basis points (bps) to headline inflation, while non-food items accounted for 250 bps. Inflation in the food and beverages category crossed 5% for the first time under the new CPI series, amid a 40% rainfall deficit during June that raised concerns over crop output. The impact of the petrol and diesel price hikes announced in May became evident in June with transport inflation rising sharply from 1.75% to 4.31%. SC remands citizenship row back to tribunal, says apply fair process s u c h i t r a k a lya n m o h a n t y @ New Delhi The Supreme Court on Monday, while hearing 27 appeals, set aside the orders passed by the Gauhati High Court upholding declaration of the appellants as foreigners, noting that determinations of citizenship must be carried out through a “fair, lawful and reasonable process”. “The state has a legitimate and compelling interest in ensuring that persons who are not legally entitled to claim Indian citizenship do not secure such status by misuse of process by false claim or by taking advantage of delays. At the same time, the determination of such status must be made through a process which is fair, lawful and reasonable,” said a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta. The court remanded all the 27 cases to the concerned Foreigners Tribunals for fresh adjudication, noting that the question of citizenship carries significant constitutional weight. “The remand being directed ... is only to ensure that the serious consequence of being declared a foreigner follows from an adjudication which satisfies the requirements of the Foreigners Act, 1946, the Foreigners (Tribunals) Order, 1964, and the constitutional mandate of fairness,” the Court observed. The bench further said the concerned tribunals should decide the cases afresh. The judges clarified that the court has not examined the merits of the claim of citizenships by appellants. “Those questions must be decided by the concerned tribunal independently,” it said. Litigants reject Teen falls from 10th floor mediation push while fleeing girlfriend’s in three religious apartment, loses life site disputes E x p r e s s n e w s s e r v i c e @ New Delhi EFFORTS to explore an out-of-court settlement in three major religious site disputes in Uttar Pradesh have failed to gain pace, with parties in the Gyanvapi, Sri Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Eidgah and the Sambhal Shahi Jama Masjid cases insisting that the courts adjudicate them. The Supreme Court proposed these cases be heard in a special Lok Adalat from August 21 to 23. “These are not disputes that can be resolved through a Lok Adalat or mediation,” a counsel for a Hindu-side petitioner said. The mosque management committee said mediation is not an appropriate mechanism for their case. Significantly the SC in 2019 had ordered , a court-monitored mediation to resolve the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute. In the Gyanvapi case, Hindu petitioners claim the Varanasi mosque was built over the ruins of the Kashi Vishwanath temple, a claim the Masjid Committee rejects. In Sambhal, a court-ordered survey prompted by Hindu litigants’ claims that the mosque stands on the site of the Harihar temple, triggered violent clashes last November. As for the Krishna Janmabhoomi-Shahi Eidgah case, the Hindu side claims the mosque stands on the birthplace of Lord Krishna, an assertion the mosque committee contests. E x p r e s s Ne w s Se r v i c e @ Bhubaneswar A 16-year-old boy died after allegedly falling from the 10th floor of an apartment in Chandrasekharpur here on Monday. He was reportedly trying to escape through a bathroom window after his girlfriend’s mother returned home unexpectedly . According to police, the boy and girl are both Class XI students of a private English-medium school in the city. The boy had visited the girl’s flat in her mother’s absence. However, the girl’s mother, who works in a private university in the city, returned home before time as her daughter was keeping unwell. Panicking on her arrival, the boy is said to have hid inside the bathroom. On suspicion, the mother knocked on the bathroom door and the boy attempted to flee through the window. He climbed on to exterior pipes running along the building, where he reportedly lost his footing and fell to the ground from the 10th floor. Staff at the apartment complex heard a loud thud and found the boy lying in a pool of blood.  hanC drasekharpur police were alerted and he was rushed to a hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Preliminary probe suggests the The bathroom window through which the teenager tried to exit | express boy panicked and fell while attempting to escape using the pipes outside the bathroom. His schoolbag was later found hanging from the pipes on the ninth floor. “A scientific team visited the spot to investigate the incident. CCTV footage and statements from eyewitnesses are being examined. A case of unnatural death has been registered and further investigation is underway,” said Bhubaneswar DCP Jagmohan Meena. Police said the girl’s father works outside the state and she lives in the city with her mother. They are still ascertaining whether the boy fell while trying to hide or attempting to climb down the pipes. 28 killed in Bangkok bar fire A videograb of people fleeing a fire at the Rong Beer Na Lat Phrao bar in Bangkok. The fire killed at least 28 people and injured dozens, sending screaming patrons fleeing as flames shot from the entrance | P9 M aya n k B h u s a n Pa n i @ Sambalpur Chhattisgarh has not granted a no-objection certificate (NOC) to Odisha for installation of a modern discharge monitoring system at the strategically vital Saradihi gauge station despite the recent thaw in ties between the two states over the Mahanadi river. Documents accessed by The New Indian Express reveal that the office of the Chief Engineer and Basin Manager, Mahanadi Basin, Burla, has written multiple letters to Chhattisgarh’s Water Resources department citing the urgency of the matter. However, the requests have remained unanswered. In a letter dated June 18, then Chief Engineer Babulal Behera requested the Engineer-in-Chief of Chhattisgarh’s Water Resources department to issue an NOC for installation of a noncontact discharge measurement system at the Saradihi barrage. The communication referred to an earlier letter sent on March 26, noting that the required clearance was “still awaited”. Saradihi matter  Most critical upstream gauge station for Hirakud reservoir operations  Water from Saradihi reaches Hirakud in about 12 hours  Existing gauge station became unreliable after construction of the Saradihi barrage  Odisha proposes a `67.52-lakh non-contact discharge measurement system  Offered to share realtime discharge data with Chhattisgarh The letter described Saradihi as “a most critical location for inflow forecasting and reservoir operation”. It explained that the existing gauge station of the Hirakud Dam Project now falls within the ponded area of the Saradihi bar rage, rendering the conventional stage-discharge relationship ineffective for accurate flow measurement. Continued on P5