National
Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021
⇒ The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021, which seeks to amend the Juvenile Justice Act, 2015, was passed in the Rajya Sabha, on 28 July 2021. It was passed in Lok Sabha on 24 March 2021.
Amendment Includes:
» The amendments include authorizing District Magistrate including Additional District Magistrate to issue adoption orders under Section 61 of the JJ Act, in order to ensure speedy disposal of cases and enhance accountability.
» The District Magistrates have been further empowered under the Act, to ensure its smooth implementation, as well as garner synergized efforts in favour of children in distress conditions.
» As per the amended provisions of the Act, any Child Care Institutions shall be registered after considering the recommendations of the District Magistrate.
» The DM shall independently evaluate the functioning of District Child Protection Units, Child Welfare Committees, Juvenile Justice Boards, Specialized Juvenile Police Units, Child care Institutions etc.
First Television Lifetime Achievement Award
⇒ Senior journalist & founder of Asianet, the country’s first regional satellite television channel, Sashi Kumar has been selected for the first Television Lifetime Achievement Award.
Mr Sashi Kumar has won the award for providing a secular and progressive direction to visual media in the State and helping to lay the foundation for a serious television culture.
The award has been instituted by the Kerala State government. It carries a cash prize of ₹2 lakh, citation and a statuette.
Mr Sashi Kumar is currently chairman of Asian College of Journalism.
International
IMF forecasts India’s growth for FY 2022
⇒ The International Monetary Fund (IMF) on 27 July 2021 has slashed India’s growth forecast for FY 2022 to 9.5 per cent from its previous projection of 12.5 per cent, citing the severe second Covid-19 wave during March-May.
Annual meeting of the Defence Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states
⇒ Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh visited Dushanbe, Tajikistan from July 27-29, 2021 to attend the annual meeting of the Defence Ministers of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member states. Issues of Defence cooperation among SCO member states were discussed in the annual meeting.
Shri Rajnath Singh’s addressed the meeting on July 28, 2021. Highlights of Shri Rajnath Singh’s address:
» Member-States of the SCO completed 20 years of its existence, has collective stakes to create a safe and secure region.
» India completed 500 projects in Afghanistan; gave aid of USD 3 Bn.
» Peace and Prosperity cannot coexist with terrorism, which is a crime against humanity.
» Non-traditional threats like water security, climate change pose challenges as Covid-19 pandemic.
» Indian Armed Forces and DRDO played a stellar role to counter Covid-19 challenges.
» During the global pandemic, India was able to provide support and assistance to countries around the world. This includes 6.6 crore doses of vaccines to 90 countries, support with medicine, medical consumables and equipment to 150 countries.
» ‘Vande Bharat’ logistic service helped over 70 lakh stranded people including foreigners move out of distress.
» India accords high priority to consolidation of trust in security domain within SCO as well as strengthening ties with SCO partners.
Important day
World Hepatitis Day 2021
⇒ World Hepatitis Day is observed each year on 28 July. The World Hepatitis day is celebrated to raise awareness of viral hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver that causes severe liver disease and hepatocellular cancer.
Theme:
The theme for World Hepatitis Day 2021 is ‘Hepatitis Can’t Wait’, conveying the urgency of efforts needed to eliminate hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030.
History:
This day is marked on July 28 on the birthday of Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr Baruch Blumberg to honour him. He discovered the Hepatitis B virus (HBV). He also developed a diagnostic test and vaccine to treat the Hep-B virus.
15th Foundation Day of the Ministry of Earth Sciences
⇒ The Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) celebrated its 15th Foundation Day at Prithvi Bhavan Headquarters in New Delhi on 27 July 2021.
During the event, the Ministry launched multiple societally beneficial initiatives.
‘Pune Weather Live’ App:
The India Meteorological Department (IMD), MoES, introduced a new mobile app named ‘Pune Weather Live’. It will provide real-time and location-specific weather updates for Pune city. The app, released by Dr Rajeevan, captures live data from more than 80 weather stations, including information on rainfall.
Winners of National Award on the occasion of 15th Foundation Day of Ministry of Earth Sciences
Death
Legends of Indian badminton, Nandu Natekar
⇒ Legends of Indian badminton, Nandu Natekar passed away on 28 July 2021. He was 88.
In 1961, Nandu Natekar was awarded the first Arjun Award in badminton.
The Pune resident became the first Indian player to win an international event when he won the Sellanger International in Malaysia in 1956.
Nandu won the Men’s Doubles National Championship a total of six times, the Men’s Singles National Championship a total of six times, and the Mixed Doubles National Championship a total of five times.
The former World No. 3 made it to the quarter-finals of the prestigious All England Championships in 1954. He won 12 out of 16 singles matches and eight out of 16 doubles matches as part of the Indian team at the Thomas Cup between 1951 and 1963. He represented India at the 1965 Commonwealth Games in Jamaica.