Important Current Affairs 23rd October 2019

National Affairs

Zakir Musa’s successor among 3 militants killed in Kashmir encounter

Three militants of Ansar ul Gazwat ul Hind, a terror outfit linked to al Qaeda, were killed in an encounter in Tral area of Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district.

18 terrorists killed, JeM launch pads destroyed in PoK strikes by Indian army

Officials in Indian security agencies that have assessed the impact of the Indian Army’s artillery assault on terror launch pads in Neelum Valley and three other places in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK), said on condition of anonymity that at least 18 terrorists were killed along with 16 Pak Army personnel on October 19 and 20. The army hasn’t confirmed the number of dead.

Satya Pal Malik may be Lt Guv of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh Union territories

 The union government is looking for candidates to take over as lieutenant governors (L-Gs) of the Union Territories (UTs) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Ladakh, carved out following J&K’s reorganisation that will come into effect on October 31, according to people aware of the developments.

There has been speculation that J&K governor Satya Pal Malik, 73, could preside over both UTs--J&K and Ladakh--even as the J&K Reorganisation Act provides for separate L-Gs for both UTs.

Delhi HC dismisses plea against odd-even scheme

-The Delhi High Court Wednesday dismissed a PIL challenging the AAP government's proposed odd-even road rationing scheme which is expected to be in force from November 4-15.

-A bench of Chief Justice DN Patel and Justice C Hari Shankar declined to entertain the plea as the petitioner had not made any representation to the government before approaching the court.

-The court also said that the petition was filed without the details of the scheme which is yet to be notified by the Delhi government.

Happy Fridge to ensure that no one goes hungry on Diwali

-In a bid to fight against hunger and poverty, Feeding India NGO has kickstarted an initiative and has come up with the idea of installing community refrigerators.

-In these community refrigerators, people can store surplus food or can donate food to the needy.

Govt hikes wheat MSP by Rs 85/qtl; pulses up to Rs 325/qtl

The government on Wednesday increased the minimum support price (MSP) for wheat by Rs 85 to Rs 1,925 a quintal and for pulses by up to Rs 325 per quintal.A decision in this regard was taken at the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Kerala cabinet reduces fine for certain offences under new Motor Vehicle Act

-The Kerala cabinet has decided to reduce fines for certain offences under the new Motor Vehicle Act

-The fine for speeding for light Motor Vehicle was between Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000. The revised fine has been fixed by the state government to be Rs 1,500. The fine for the heavy vehicle was between Rs 2,000 to Rs 4,000. It has been fixed to be Rs 3,000 by the state government.

-The cabinet has decided to fine violators Rs 2,000 if caught using mobile phones while driving. Earlier, the fine for this offence used to be between Rs 1,000 to Rs 5,000.

-For auto racing, the fine earlier was Rs 10,000 which has been reduced to Rs 5,000.

-The fine for driving without a permit was between Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000. It has now been fixed at Rs 3,000.

-The fine for not wearing a seat belt or riding without a helmet has been reduced to Rs 500 from Rs 1,000.

-The fine, however, for not giving side to an ambulance and fire service has been reduced to Rs 5,000 from Rs 10,000.

-For a repeated offence of driving without insurance, the fine has been reduced from Rs 4,000 to Rs 2,000.

-Parliament in July had passed the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Bill, 2019, which seeks to tighten road traffic regulations such as the issuance of driving licence and imposed stricter penalties for traffic-related violations.

BEST launches bus services without conductors in Mumbai

The Mumbai civic body's transport arm BEST has for the first time started conductor-less bus services on two routes here from Wednesday, a senior official said.

Passengers will have to buy tickets at the originating stops while boarding these non-stop buses.

HIGHLIGHTS

•           Assam has rolled out its two-child policy passed by assembly in 2017

•           Assam policy disqualifies people with more than two kids for government jobs

•           India was among the first countries to launch a family planning programme in 1951

Four opposition MLAs join BJP in Jharkhand

Sukhdeo Bhagat and Manoj Yadav of the Congress, Kunal Sarangi of the JMM and Independent MLA Bhanu Pratap Sahi joined the BJP in the presence of Chief Minister Raghubar Das at the party office here.

11-Terrorists hurl petrol bomb at security forces in Srinagar

-Targeting the forces in Srinagar, terrorists hurled petrol bomb at them and fled the spot.

-The incident happened at Srinagar's Batmaloo.

-Hameed Lelhari was named its new commander by Al-Qaeda affiliated Ansar Ghazwat-ul-Hind (AGH) after Zakir Musa's death in May, 2019.

INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Hong Kong extradition bill withdrawn, but protests unlikely to end

The rallying cry of the protesters, who have trashed public buildings in the Chinese-ruled city, set street fires and thrown petrol bombs at police, has been “five demands, not one less”, meaning the withdrawal of the bill make no difference.

-Will continue to pressurise Pakistan to act against Lashkar, Jaish and Hizbul, says US

The US has once again reiterated that it will continue to pressurise Pakistan to act against terrorism breeding on its ground.

•           US has said it will continue to put pressure on Pakistan to act against terror outfits

•           US has said it will pressurise Pakistan to against Lashkar, Jaish and Hizbul

•           US also supported Imran Khan's remark that terrorists are enemies of Pakistan too

-White House denounces ‘smear campaign’ against Donald Trump

The White House rejected damning testimony Tuesday from a US diplomat in Donald Trump’s impeachment probe as part of a “smear campaign” from the far left of the Democratic Party.

Stunning congressional testimony by Bill Taylor appeared to confirm allegations that Trump abused his office by conditioning foreign aid to Ukraine on its leader interfering on Trump’s behalf in the 2020 election.

Important Day

23 October - Mole Day

Mole Day is observed on 23 October every year. This day commemorates the Avogadro's Number which is a basic measuring unit in chemistry. This day was created to generate interest in chemistry.

23 Oct, 2002 - Hungary Protests Against Soviet Rule

2002 : Fifty Chechen rebels storm a Moscow Theater taking 7,000 hostages. The rebels had explosives strapped to their bodies and were demanding the withdrawal of Soviet Forces from Chechnya. Three days later after the death of two of the hostages Russian Special Forces stormed the building and during the raid most of the terrorists and 120 hostages were killed during the raid.

23 Oct, 1915 - U.S.A. Suffrage Movement

1915 : As part of the women's suffrage movement 25,000 women march up Fifth Avenue in New York City demanding the right to vote.

23 Oct, 2007 - U.S.A. Space Shuttle Discovery

October 23rd, 2007 : Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-120) begins a 14-day mission to the International Space Station (ISS) to deliver the Harmony module and reconfigured part of the station in preparation for future assembly missions. The crew commanded by American Pam Melroy, included Mission Specialist Paolo A. Nespoli from Italy where Harmony was built.

23 Oct, 2001 - U.S.A. iPod

October 23rd, 2001 : Apple releases the first iPod capable of storing 1,000 songs. The iPod came with a 5 GB hard drive and was fully Mac compatible. Sales worldwide of the iPod now exceed 150 million and Apple iTunes has now sold over 5 billion songs worldwide.

SPORTS

-Abhishek Nayar retires from all forms of cricket

Veteran Mumbai all-rounder Abhishek Nayar has retired from all forms of cricket.

“I’m absolutely satisfied... there are so many cricketers out there who would want to be in the position I am today. I can only be grateful and thankful to have had the opportunity to play for this long... absolutely no regrets...I’m a happy man,” Nayar said .