Express daily briefing: Red alert in four districts of Kerala, ground report from Jammu border, more

Monsoon check: Heavy rainfall throws life out of gear

Heavy rainfall in several states has thrown life out of gear. In Kerala, a red alert in sounded in four districts, while the Kochi international airport has suspended operations till 3 pm Sunday. In Karnataka, at least 15 districts are flood-hit. In Maharashtra, nine people died and five are missing after a boat capsized Thursday in Sangli district. Click here to follow live updates on the weather from across the country.

Exclusive: On the ground at Jammu border — Protests, hope

Additional forces have been deployed in the Valley amid reports of protests in the border districts against the removal of special status and the reorganisation of J&K. But, beyond the protests, there is hope, with some feeling good about the “freedom” they got from “70 years of exploitation by Kashmir-centric politicians”.

Yashwant Sinha writes: Once there was a commitment

My heart goes out to the people of Kashmir today. I would want them to know that there are still at least some of us in India who believe in dialogue and reconciliation. For us, these words are not mere matters of convenience to be used when it suits us and to be discarded when it does not, the former finance minister writes. 

Finance in talks with FPIs to provide relief from surcharge 

The government could move to review rules relating to Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) impacted by the surcharge on income tax imposed on the super rich this Budget. While some relief is likely for the FPIs, the surcharge is unlikely to be lifted for other individuals.

Gender gap in AIIMS OPD: Four lakh women missing in 2016

As many as four lakh women patients have gone “missing” in 2016 at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, a study published in BMJ, Open revealed. The authors concluded there is “…gender discrimination in access to healthcare, which was worse for female patients who were in the younger and older age groups, and for those who lived at increasing distances from the hospital.”

Hashim Amla: Rainbow loses colour

“The world knows him as a great batsman, but my memories of him are about the incredible human being that he is.” As South African cricketer Hashim Amla announces retirement from international cricket, the team’s long-time performance analyst Prasanna Agoram writes about the fond memories he shared with the cricketer.

And finally…

In his address to the nation last night, Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the words Jammu-Kashmir and Ladakh 65 times and 28 times respectively. There were 18 mentions of sarkar (government) while Article 370 was mentioned on seven occasions. 

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