Important Current Affairs 25th September 2020

National

Labour Codes passed by Parliament to reform labour laws

• In a historic move, the Parliament has passed three labour codes on September 23, 2020 to reform the Labour Laws. These labour codes are Industrial Relations Code, 2020; Occupational Safety, Health & Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code) and Social Security Code, 2020.

•  These labour codes aim to introduce transparency in the changing business environment.

Railways target to complete 100% electrification of broad gauge routes by 2023

• Railways has planned for 100 per cent electrification of its broad gauge routes by 2023 said by the Railway Minister Piyush Goyal.

• Around 63 per cent broad gauge lines have already been electrified out of a total 63,631 route kilometers as on 1st of April this year. A total of 23,765 route kilometre lines are yet to be electrified in the country.

EAM Dr S Jaishankar attends Special Ministerial Meeting of FMs of CICA

• The Union Minister of External Affairs, Dr S Jaishankar participated in the Special Ministerial Meeting of Foreign Ministers of the CICA on 24 September 2020.

• CICA is an inter-governmental forum for enhancing cooperation towards promoting peace, security and stability in Asia. CICA stands for the ‘Conference on Interaction & Confidence Building Measures in Asia’.

• The Secretariat of CICA is based at Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.It has 27 member states including India; 8 observer states and 5 observer organizations.

International

Alexander Lukashenko sworn in as President of Belarus for 6th term

• President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko has been sworn in for a sixth term on 23 September 2020.

• The 66 year-old authoritarian leader won 80% of the vote in the presidential election to gain another 5 year term.

• Lukashenko is serving as the President of Belarus since the establishment of the office 26 years ago, on 20 July 1994.

Acquisitions and Mergers

CCI approves merger of Medlife with PharmEasy

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) approved the proposed combination of Medlife and API Holdings.

• The deal pertains to the proposed acquisition of 100 per cent equity shares of Medlife by API Holdings. Medlife shareholders are to get up to 19.59 per cent equity share capital of API Holdings.

• Medlife, a Patna-based company, was valued at $375 million as of January 31, 2020.

Obituary

Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi passes away at 65

• Union Minister of State for Railways Suresh Angadi has passed away after he contracted Chinese virus disease. He was 65-years-old.

• Suresh Angadi was a four-time Lok Sabha MP from Karnataka’s Belagavi constituency. He was elected in 2004, 2014 and 2019.

Former Australian Cricketer Dean Jones passes away

• Former Australian cricketer and renowned commentator, Dean Jones passed away. He made his debut for Australia in a Test match in the West Indies in 1984.

•  He played 52 Tests and 164 ODIs for Australia between 1984 and 1994 before venturing into the commentary.  He scored almost 9500 international runs.

Appointments and Resignations

17-Year-Old Khushi Chindaliya Appointed As UNEP’s Indian Green Ambassador

• A 17-year-old girl from Surat, Khushi Chindaliya has been appointed as the Regional Ambassador for India for the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Tunza Eco-Generation, a recurring event with monthly goals.

• Khushi, who has been named India’s ‘Green Ambassador’ for her contribution to the conservation of the environment.

• Khushi will work with TEG on various awareness programs till February 2021. Crucially, Khushi is one of the 100 youths in India whose essays will be featured in a UNESCO book.

Govt extends term of Uday Kotak as Chairman of Debt-ridden IL&FS by One Year

• The government extended the term of Uday Kotak as non-executive chairman of debt-ridden IL&FS group by one year with effect from the 3rd day of October 2020.

• Kotak was appointed by the Government as the head of the lender”s board in 2018 to help the troubled company come out of difficulties, after the state took over the board.

Ranking

Shivangi Singh becomes first woman pilot to fly Rafale aircraft

• Flight Lieutenant Shivangi Singh makes history by becoming the first woman fighter pilot to fly the recently inducted Rafale aircraft. The Rafale was officially inducted on September 10, 2020 in the Indian Air Force.

• Singh is currently receiving the training to fly the Rafale, which is based in Ambala.

Days

World Pharmacist Day

• The World Pharmacist Day is observed on September 25 annually to create awareness about the role of a pharmacist in improving health.

• 2020 theme: “Transforming global health“.

• The day was designated in 2009 by the FIP Council (International Pharmaceutical Federation or Federation International Pharmaceutique) at the World Congress of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences in Istanbul, Turkey.

World Maritime Day 2020

• World Maritime Day 2020 is observed globally on 24th September in the form of an online event. The exact date of celebrating World Maritime Day is left to the individual governments but is usually celebrated during the last week in September.

• The theme of World Maritime Day 2020 is “Sustainable shipping for a sustainable planet”.