Tag: latest Current Affairs

CURRENT AFFAIRS
06 August 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) PM Modi lays foundation stone for Ram temple in Ayodhya.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today laid the foundation stone for the construction of the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, 28 years after the demolition of the Babri Masjid that once stood at the same spot. The building of the Ram temple marks the culmination of a campaign that dominated and polarised, the domestic political landscape for decades. Today, however, it was met by a near-unanimous show of support from political parties across the spectrum. PM Modi was accompanied by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, among others. The Prime Minister unveiled a plaque and released a commemorative postal stamp to mark the occasion. In a lengthy and emotional speech, he said a long wait has finally ended and the Ram temple will be the harbinger of a prosperous India.

B) Tight security in J&K on the anniversary of Article 370 abrogation.

5 August also marks the one-year anniversary of the Modi government’s decision to abrogate Jammu and Kashmir’s special status under Article 370. Tight security was maintained across the Kashmir Valley on 5 August in order to foil protest marches by the National Conference (NC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The president of NC party, who is also a Member of Parliament is heading a meeting of all regional parties so that they can apparently move to carry forward the Gupkar Declaration which was signed on August 4, 2019, by the regional parties. However, security has been beefed up on Gupkar Road, and barricades have been set up.

C) Tweets amounted to ‘criticism’ and not ‘contempt’, Bhushan tells SC. 

Noted civil rights lawyer Prashant Bhushan on 5 August conveyed to the Supreme Court that his tweets in June of a photograph showing Chief Justice Sharad A. Bobde astride a bike and the court’s role in the past six years amounted to ‘criticism’ and not contempt. He said that this is criticism. Why don’t they take it objectively? senior advocate Dushyant Dave, for Bhushan, asked a three-judge Bench led by Justice Arun Mishra. Noting that hundreds of people had tweeted the photograph of Chief Justice Bobde on the motorbike, Dave asked, There are many amusing tweets by others. Is the court going to call them all in?

D) Covid watch: Numbers and Developments.

The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 19,51,813 with the death toll at 40,643. India on Wednesday recorded 52,509 new cases. The Health Ministry said that India registered a record 51,706 coronavirus recoveries today and that the country’s recovery rate stood at 67.19%. India’s death rate, it added, is now 2.09%. 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) Beirut blast claims more than 100, two-week emergency declared

A massive blast occurred in port warehouses near central Beirut on Tuesday, killing 100 people, and injuring nearly 4,000. The blast sent shockwaves that shattered windows, smashed masonry, and shook the ground across the Lebanese capital. The blast has been linked to the storage of massive quantities of highly explosive material in the warehouses.  While Lebanon’s volatile capital is no stranger to violent explosions, the city, already reeling from an economic crisis and a surge in coronavirus infections, has never seen one of this magnitude. The government has declared an emergency of 2 weeks. It has also approved $13 million to deal with the crisis.

B) China calls change in J&K status ‘illegal’.

Speaking of Article 370, China on 5 August repeated its opposition to the move by saying that any unilateral change to the status quo in Jammu and Kashmir is illegal and invalid. The statement was given by the Foreign Ministry of China on 5 August in response to a question on the anniversary, reiterated Beijing’s opposition to the move, which it had similarly expressed in several statements last year. Last year, Beijing had particularly voiced its opposition to the creation of a union territory in Ladakh, which included within its boundaries the Aksai Chin region, now occupied by China, although India had pointed out to China that the change had not altered India’s external boundaries or its territorial claims in any way.

C) Macron to visit Beirut as France pushes reconstruction

The President of France, Mr. Emmanuel Macron will travel to Lebanon on 6 August. He is the first world leader to visit Beirut after the blast that took place on 5 August and wreaked destruction across the capital, since France seeks to push reconstruction. He will go to Beirut so as to give the people they’re a message of fraternity and solidarity from the French. He will also discuss the situation with the political authorities. Both countries will be hoping that the visit goes smoothly. France has already sent three planes to Beirut which were loaded with rescuers, medical equipment, and a mobile clinic.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
05 August 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Leave BJP hospitality first, Congress tells rebel MLAs

On August 4,Congress national spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that the party could hold talks with rebel MLAs of the Sachin Pilot camp if they leave the hospitality of the Khattar government in Haryana and they come back to their home as well. When he was asked that whether doors are open for the dissidents, Surjewala said the legislators should first hold a dialogue with the party on the pre-condition that have to give up the security provided to them by the Haryana police in Manesar as well as the hospitality and friendship of the BJP too. Only then the dialogue can take place. 

B) Lord Ram belongs to everyone, says Priyanka ahead of Ayodhya ceremony.

Breaking the silence of Congress party on the ground-breaking ceremony of the Ram temple in Ayodhya scheduled for 5 August, Congress general secretary in-charge of Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on 4 August said that the occasion should symbolise national unity, fraternity and cultural harmony. She said that the character of Lord Ram is the thread that connects everyone in the Indian sub-continent, from North to South, East to West. After holding a recitation of Hanuman Chalisa at his Bhopal residence on 4 August,Kamal Nath announced that the Congress would send 11 silver bricks to Ayodhya for the temple on behalf of the people of Madhya Pradesh and he give the credit for former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi for opening the lock of the earlier temple at the disputed site in 1985.

C) Vivo likely to pull out as IPL sponsor

Chinese mobile phone company Vivo is likely to pull out as the IPL’s title sponsor for this year. It is in talks with the BCCI for an “amicable separation” amid rising Sino-India diplomatic tensions. The IPL will be held in the UAE from September 19 to November 10, 2020. The discussions are going on between BCCI office-bearers and the representatives of the company. There is a possibility that Vivo will not be a sponsor for 1 year. 

D) SC reserves orders in decade-old Prashant Bhushan contempt case. 

On 4 August, the Supreme Court has reserved for orders a decade-old contempt case against noted civil rights lawyer Prashant Bhushan, whose office said that he refused to apologize but he has agreed to issue a statement that his remarks about judicial “corruption” in an interview to Tehelka magazine in 2009 were not meant to hurt judges’ families or tarnish the judiciary. A two-page judicial order published later said that the court was yet to receive the explanation/apology which is to be submitted by Bhushan and Tarun Tejpal, the then editor-in-chief of Tehelka. 

E) Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments.

The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 19,01,856 with the death toll at 39,811. India on Tuesday recorded 52,050 new cases. It is interesting to note that at a time when India reported the highest one-day count of Covid-19 positive cases in the world, the Health Ministry in a presentation to the Parliamentary Committee on Health has claimed that the extended lockdown helped save nearly 78,000 lives. It also claimed that India imposed lockdown on the 55th day from the first case, while a majority of the countries waited till stage three with cases ranging from 4,000-12,000.

F) Heavy rainfall in Mumbai leading to flood is recorded. 

Mumbai has recorded its heaviest rainfall since 2005, leading to flooding all over the city and travel chaos. The BMC urged residents to stay indoors. The BMC also said that the people of Mumbai are requested not to step out unless it is extremely necessary. The India Meteorological Department issued a red alert with a forecast of “extremely heavy” rainfall in Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Raigad and Ratnagiri districts in Maharashtra over the next 48 hours.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

A) Trump signs order against hiring of H1B visa holders for federal contracts.

On 3 August, the President of US Mr. Donald Trump has signed an executive order which prevents the federal agencies from hiring foreign workers mainly those on H-1B visa – for federal contracts. The decision came over 1 month after the Trump administration suspended the H-1B visas, along with other types of foreign work visas, until the end of 2020 to protect American workers in a crucial year. The new restrictions took effect from June 24.

B) Eid ceasefire opens window for Indian hostages return. 

The ceasefire of Eid  between Taliban and the Afghan forces that has also included prisoner exchanges, has given a ray of hope that all 3 Indian hostages who were kidnapped back in 2018 will return their home soon. The negotiations for the release of two hostages have been completed, while Afghan officials are hopeful of resolving issues for the release of the third as well. A Loya Jirga (a grand tribal council) called by President Ashraf Ghani on August 7 in order to advise him on the fate of about 400 Taliban convicted of heinous crimes could also prove crucial in securing the release. The 3 hostages were employees of KEC International that was developing a power project in Northern Baglan province in Afghanistan. 

C) China asks India to avoid politicising normal cooperation

On August 4, China has called upon India to avoid politicizing normal cooperation by reviewing the ongoing cooperation for language training between Indian universities and Chinese government-run programs. The Ministry of Education (Ministry of Human Resource Development) has also put several institutes that offer Chinese language training under the scanner by following the decision to drop Mandarin from the list of suggested languages under the National Education Policy (NEP). Part of this review extends to the Confucius Institutes and Confucius Classrooms jointly established by China’s Confucius Institute and seven Indian universities and colleges.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
02 August 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

A) Gehlot says he has no problem welcoming back Pilot.

On 1 August, by reversing his earlier stand, Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said that if the Congress high command forgives the rebels, which include former Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, then he will also welcome them back in the fold. Gehlot on earlier occasions had used harsh words for Pilot, calling him “nikamma” or useless, at a time when the Congress leadership was working hard to mend bridges with the rebel camp.

B) Congress internal rift out in open as 3 former ministers defend UPA-2.
Following Rajya Sabha MP Rajeev Satav’s recent comments at a virtual party meeting, 3 former Union ministers, Manish Tewari, Shashi Tharoor, and Milind Deora, defend former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the UPA-II government. During a recent meeting of the party’s Rajya Sabha members with President Sonia Gandhi, when former Union Minister Kapil Sibal remarked that the party needed to introspect, Satav had retorted that introspection should begin from the UPA-2 period, focussing on how the Congress fell to 44 Lok Sabha seats in
2014.

C) Prashant Bhushan and 2 others move the apex Court against Contempt of Court Act.
Senior journalists N. Ram, A Shourie and advocate Prashant Bhushan have moved the Apex Court against a law that allows criminal contempt proceedings to be initiated on the ground that a publication may tend to or even scandalize or lower the authority of a court of law. They said that the contempt of Court law was unconstitutional, Their petition focusses on the legality of Section 2(c)(i) of the Contempt of Court Act. This section deals with criminal contempt of Court by publishing any matter which tries to bring down the reputation of a Court.

D) COVID Watch: Numbers and Developments.
The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 17,33,580 with the death toll at 36,982. Since the things are getting better, the Centre has decided to allow the export of indigenously made ventilators to India. The decision was taken because of the continuous decline of fatality among Covid-19 patients. The debate about whether to reopen schools was going on, meanwhile, a new study has found that children who are younger than five years have much higher levels of the novel coronavirus genetic material in their nose as compared to older children and adults.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

A) ICMR gave fast-tracks approvals for Israeli research on test kits.
The government has approved the Israel conduct COVID-19 research on patients who were admitted to 4 hospitals of Delhi. This also includes the transfer of saliva samples and data of patients to Israel. The Defense Research and Development Organization of India (DRDO) is collaborating with the Directorate of Defense Research and Development of Israel (DRDD) in order to conduct the trials on Indian patients which includes various tests such as: audio test, breath test, thermal testing and a polyamine test to isolate proteins related to COVID-19. The trial obtained expedited approval by the Health Ministry’s Screening Committee (HSMC). The head of HSMC is Dr. Balram Bhargava who was appointed on July 28.

B) Arab world’s first nuclear plant achieves criticality UAE announces the launch of Barakah.
The oil-rich United Arab Emirates on 1 August announced the start-up of its Barakah nuclear power plant, scoring another first for the Arab world. The announcement coincides with the Muslim holiday of Id. This is a historic milestone for the country with a vision set to deliver a new form of clean energy for the nation. The UAE Premier and ruler of Dubai, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, tweeted that the work at Barakah had started and they are successful in loading the nuclear fuel packages and carrying out comprehensive tests and successfully completing the operation.

C) Trump says he will ban TikTok from the U.S.
On 31 July President Donald Trump said that he will bar fast-growing social media app TikTok from the U.S. because American authorities have raised concerns relating to the service that could be a tool for Chinese intelligence. U.S. officials and lawmakers in the past few days have raised concerns about the popular video platform being used by Beijing for some alternative purposes. But the company has denied that they are having any links to the Chinese government.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
01 August 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

A) The output of eight core industries contract by 15%

The much-awaited “green shoots” continue to elude the Indian economy, with the output of 8 core industries shrinking for the 4th consecutive month. The output of 8 core infrastructure industries has shrunk by 15% in June due to a fall in the production of coal, crude oil, natural gas, steel, cement, and electricity. The 8 core sectors had expanded by 1.2% in June 2019. This data has been released by the Commerce and Industry Ministry on 31 July. Except for fertilizer, the rest 7 sectors had recorded negative growth in May 2020. During April-June 2020-21, the sector’s output dipped by 24.6%, as compared to positive growth of 3.4% in the same period the previous year. These eight industries account for 40.27% of the Index of Industrial Production (IIP).

B) COVID Watch: Numbers and Developments

The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 16,89,388 with the death toll at 36,469. India on 31 July reported a record of 55,078 new coronavirus cases. On 31 July, the Apex Court has directed the Centre to ensure that the salaries of doctors and frontline healthcare workers who are involved in dealing with the coronavirus pandemic will be paid on time. The Centre informed that four states – Maharashtra, Punjab, Karnataka, and Tripura are yet to follow its orders on timely payment of salaries. Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation extended the suspension of international flights in the country till August 31.

C) Spurious liquor claims 21 in Punjab, high-level probe ordered. 

Approximately 21 people have died in several districts of Punjab after consuming toxic liquor. Chief Minister of Punjab, Mr. Amarinder Singh has ordered a high-level probe into this tragedy. The CM had ordered a magisterial inquiry into suspected spurious liquor deaths in Amritsar, Gurdaspur and Tarn Taran. The Commissioner of Jalandhar Division will conduct the inquiry and coordinate with concerned people and other officers. The persons who are guilty will not be spared. 

D) Mehbooba Mufti’s detention extended, Sajad Lone, released.

The government of Jammu and Kashmir has released the chief of Peoples Conference (PC),  Sajad Lone after 360 days, but at the same time, it extended the detention of the president of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mehbooba Mufti by more 3 months. Both Mufti and Lone had been in detention since  August 5, 2019. This is done by following the revocation of J&K’s special status. The regional parties in Jammu and Kashmir have claimed that over 24 mainstream leaders continue to remain under house arrest, even after completing detention periods in different sub-jails in Kashmir since August 5, 2019.

E) UGC sticks to its guns on college exams by September-end. 

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has orally made a submission in the Supreme Court that the students should not stop their preparation for the final year exams which are decided to be conducted by the end of September this year. UGC has filed an affidavit on July 31 by saying that the exams were scheduled by the end of September 2020 so as to give sufficient time to make arrangements amid the pandemic. UGC in the same affidavit has also informed the court that the information sought from 818 universities shows that 603 universities had conducted their final year exams or will conduct the exams during August-September 2020.

 

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) Hong Kong postpones election by a year, citing Covid-19.

The leader of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam on 31 July announced that the elections which will go to happen on September 6, are postponed for 1 year. She said that this decision was taken because of the increasing cases of Covid-19. The opposition party was hoping to win with a historic majority in the Legislative Council, in which only half of the seats are directly elected and the other half were mostly filled by pro-Beijing appointees. The postponing of the vote by Lam comes when 12 pro-democracy candidates were disqualified from running in the poll, because of their perceived troublemaker intentions and their opposition to new security law.

B) Forced decoupling will hurt India and China: Chinese envoy. 

As India reassesses its trade relations with China and considers a range of moves to reduce dependencies, China has called for equal treatment for its firms and described that forced decoupling between both the countries is harmful for both of them. India has rolled out moves to more tightly regulate Chinese investment and to dilute the presence of Chinese companies in certain sectors. The Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy was amended in April to protect firms from takeovers, while following the June 15 clash in Galway Valley, moves have been introduced to reduce Chinese presence in road projects, power equipment sales and in public procurement, besides banning at least 59 widely-used Chinese apps, including TikTok.

C) Vietnam reports the first COVID-19 death.

Vietnam has recorded its first death from COVID-19 on 31 July after winning plaudits worldwide for one of the most successful national responses to the pandemic. The country has a population of 96 million had gone 100 days without infection. The Health Ministry on 31 July has reported 82 new infections. On 30 July, Hanoi started mass COVID-19 testing. By noon on 31 July, 21,732 people had been tested in the capital, the Hanoi Centre for Disease Control said. Around 21,000 were tested negative. Hanoi on 30 July also banned large gatherings and urged tens of thousands of domestic travelers to report to authorities. It also shut bars and nightclubs, extending those closures to street food stalls and karaoke lounges from midnight on 31 July.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
31 JULY 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) Herd immunity, not a strategic option, says Health Ministry. 

On 30 July, the Health Ministry said that it cannot be a strategic option. Herd immunity is a kind of indirect protection from an infectious disease similar to Covid-19. Herd immunity happens only when a population becomes immune. This statement comes amid a scenario where, even as some areas are approaching the infection levels required for herd immunity, the rate of spread of the disease continues to be uneven. The Health Ministry has also said that the fatality rate has decreased from 3.33% to 2.21% between 18 June to 30 July and over one million patients have recovered now. 

B) Jaya Jaitly sentenced to 4 years in jail, gets stay from High Court

On 30 July, Former chief of Samata Party, Jaya Jaitly, and two others were sentenced to 4 years of imprisonment by a special court in connection with a corruption case related to a purported defense deal. They all were held guilty of criminal conspiracy and corruption earlier. Soon after the sentencing, the Delhi High Court on July 30 stayed the 4-year jail term and sought the CBI’s response on Jaitly’s appeal challenging her conviction and sentence. Jaitly had earlier challenged the July 21 order of the trial court that had convicted her in the case. 

C) Rajasthan saga: Court issues notice to Speaker, six MLAs

The Speaker of Rajasthan and 6 former BSP MLAs who merged with the Congress have been issued notice by the High Court on petitions filed by the BSP and the BJP. The High Court has asked them for a reply till August 11. A decision on the six MLAs may be key to the survival of the Ashok Gehlot government. Meanwhile, the Congress MLAs of the Ashok Gehlot government will stay in a hotel located on the outskirts of Jaipur till the Assembly session is convened on August 14. CM Gehlot said the MLAs will go directly from the hotel to the Assembly.

D) Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments

The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 16,35,438 with the death toll at 35,792. Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has extended the lockdown till August 31 with fresh relaxations, both for areas under Chennai City and in other parts of the State. He said that a complete lockdown would be imposed across the State with strict restrictions on all Sundays in the next month.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) U.S. economy shrinks 33%.

The U.S. economy has shrunk by an annual rate of 33% in the April-June quarter, which is the worst ever quarterly decrement. The pandemic has thrown millions of people out of their work and sent unemployment surging to 14.7 %. The estimate of the Commerce Department is that the second-quarter decline in the GDP marked the sharpest drop on such records dating to 1947. The previous worst quarterly contraction occurred in 1958 with a drop of 10 % during the Eisenhower administration.

B) Trump raises the possibility of delaying 2020 Presidential polls. 

On 30 July, U.S. President Donald Trump has raised the possibility of delaying the November Presidential elections, despite the date being enshrined in the U.S. Constitution. Without any credible evidence, Trump has repeated his claims that mail-in voting, which many more people are set to do this time owing to the Covid-19 pandemic, could lead to election fraud. 

C) Australia urges India, China to show restraint. 

On 30 July, Australia urged both India and China to maintain a restraint along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Australia also expressed support to the ongoing de-escalation efforts made by both the countries. Australia said that they opposed the attempts to unilaterally alter the status quo, which will only increase the tension and the risk of instability. The Embassy of China reacted and said that Australia should not way forward to harm the relationship between the two countries and their attempt to put pressure on China will go in vain. 

SPORTS NEWS 

A) Roller-coaster start for Shubhankar Sharma. 

Indian golfer Shubhankar Sharma has begun with a flourish 1 over 73 in the Hero Open which was held on 30 July. He won twice on the European Tour.  He also had a birdie and an eagle on the second and third holes, but double bogeys on the 10th and 13th on the backstretch saw him drop a bunch of shots. Overall, he had an eagle, three birdies, two bogeys, and two double bogeys.

CURRENT AFFAIRS
30 JULY 2020

NATIONAL NEWS:

 

A) COVID Watch: Numbers and Developments.

The number of coronavirus cases reported from India stood at 15,79,601 with the death toll at 34,961. As per the Central government, the case fatality rate of India stood at 2.23% on 29 July, which is the lowest since 1 April. The Centre also added that coordinated implementation of the Test Track Treat strategy has ensured that the case fatality rate remained low when compared to other countries. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister of Delhi, Mr. Arvind Kejriwal has announced the de-linking of hotels from hospitals in view of the improving Covid-19 situation in the national capital. All beds in such hotels, which were recently attached to hospitals, have reportedly been lying vacant for many days. Also, a sero-surveillance study done in Mumbai in collaboration with the Niti Aayog has revealed that 57% of the slum population and 16% of non-slum residents in three civic wards had developed antibodies, indicating that many more people would have been affected by Covid-19 than the official report and numbers suggests.

B) Rajasthan Governor returns State Cabinet’s request for the third time. 

On 29 July, the Governor of Rajasthan Mr. Kalraj Mishra has returned Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot’s note in which he requested an assembly session, for the third time. The Governor said that there is no convincing reason to call a session on 31 July, without a 21-day notice, in the middle of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. 

C) Maruti Suzuki posts quarterly losses for the first time in 15 years. 

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. has posted a quarterly loss for the 1st time in the past 15 years. They are the largest automaker’s production of the country and the sales were declined due to coronavirus lockdown and supply chain disruptions. The headquartered company  which is located in New Delhi suffered a net loss of ₹2.49 billion rupees in the 3 months till 30 June. At the same time a year ago, the company earned a huge profit of ₹14.36 billion. Unit sales at the carmaker dropped from 81% to 76,599 vehicles for the quarter ended June 30 as compared to the same quarter last year, but Maruti has said that the figures cannot be compared as it had to suspend operations from March 22 when the country went into lockdown.

D) Rafale jets finally arrive.

After Forty-six months of signing the contract of €7.87 billion, 5 Rafale fighter jets landed at Ambala airbase on 29 July in the presence of the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) Air Chief Marshal (ACM), Mr. R.K.S. Bhadauria. This is the first imported fighter that has been added to the IAF since the Sukhoi-30s from Russia in the late 90s. The Defence Minister of India, Mr. Rajnath Singh has said that the touch-down of Rafale combat aircraft in India marks the beginning of a new era in the military history of India. These multi-role aircraft will revolutionize the capabilities of the IAF.  Noting that the Rafale jets were purchased when they fully met the operational requirements of the IAF, Singh said, “I would like to add, if it is anyone who should be worried about or critical about this new capability of the IAF, it should be those who want to threaten our territorial integrity.”

INTERNATIONAL NEWS 

A) Vaccines can be ready by the end of this year. 

There are 2 vaccine companies that are expected to be ready for some form of distribution by the end of the year. Moderna Inc. is planning to sell its coronavirus vaccine at $50 to $60 per course, which is approximately $11 more than the other vaccine one which is developed by Pfizer Inc and BioNTech.  Moderna has proposed a price for a 2 dose course sold to governments is in contrast to the $39 contract for 2 doses deal that Pfizer Inc and German partner BioNTech struck with the U.S. government.

B) 212 environmental campaigners killed worldwide. 

According to watchdog group Global Witness, a record number of 212 environmental campaigners worldwide were killed last year. According to research conducted by the NGO, more than 4 defenders were killed every week in 2019. The study conducted by the NGO revealed that Agribusiness and oil, gas, and mining have consistently been the biggest drivers of attacks against land and environmental defenders. Colombia and the Philippines accounted for half of the 212 people killed last year, followed by Brazil, Mexico, Honduras, and Guatemala.

C) Turkey approves new social media law. 

Turkey has adopted a new social media law on 29 July which critics say that it will create a chilling effect on dissenting voices who have resorted to Twitter and other online applications as the government tightened its command on the mainstream media. The law was backed by the AK Party of President Tayyip Erdogan and its nationalist allies so as to make foreign social media sites more authentic and accountable. It is required for them to appoint a local representative in order to address the concerns raised by the authorities. The law will allow Turkish authorities to remove content from platforms rather than blocking access as they have done in the past.

EDUCATIONAL NEWS 

A) 4-year UG courses in, M.Phil. out in the new education policy. 

The new National Education Policy which is approved by the Union Cabinet on 29 July will introduce a 4-year undergraduate degree with multiple entries and exit options, by abolishing the M.Phil. degree, and by establishing a common higher education regulator with fee fixation for both private and public institutions. It also ensures universalization of early childhood education from ages 3 to 6 by 2030, a new school curriculum with coding and vocational studies from Class 6, and a child’s mother tongue being used as the medium of instruction till Class 5. This is the first new education policy in the last 34 years and was a poll promise of the BJP in 2014. A panel that was headed by former ISRO chief K. Kasturirangan submitted a draft in December 2018, which was made public and opened for feedback after the Lok Sabha election in May 2019.