News Flash (21st July 2020): Top 10 Stories Of The Day

1. Class 12 results of Punjab board examinations declared. Over 90% students pass

On Tuesday, The Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) announced its Class 12 results. The overall pass percentage in Punjab stands at 90.98% this year. This year, 2.9 lakh students had taken the exams which were postponed midway due to the current pandemic. PSEB has decided not to issue a merit list keeping the pandemic in mind. This year’s Punjab result showcase a total of 38,686 students who have scored 95% and above marks in all subjects. Several government schools of Punjab have also recorded scores of 90% and 95%.

2. Bihar hit with floods, rivers flowing above the danger levels

Monsoon floods have drastically hit eight districts of Bihar affecting around 3 lakh people. Out of all the districts affected, Darbhanga is the worst hit as embankments along the Kamla Balan river breached at several places and affected an approximate of 1.58 lakh people. The other seven districts that are bearing the floods include East Champaran, Sitamarhi, Sheohar, Supaul, Kishanganj, Muzaffarpur and Gopalganj. The meteorological department has predicted that the rains might continue for the next 48 hours and worsen the situation in north Bihar and Nepal. 

3. Dalit man assaulted in K’taka for touching an upper-caste man’s bike

A 32-year-old Dalit man was “assaulted with sticks, footwear and was stripped” by a mob for allegedly touching the bike of an upper-caste man in Karnataka’s Vijayapura, 540 kilometer from Bengaluru. “The people also assaulted me and my son’s wife and his daughter when we tried to rescue him from beating,” said the father of the victim. “We’ve booked…13 accused and investigating the incident,” Vijayapura police added.

4. 1st batch of 5 IAF Rafale aircraft likely to arrive in India by July-end: Govt

The first batch of five Indian Air Force (IAF) Rafale aircraft is likely to arrive in India by July-end, the Ministry of Defence confirmed. The aircraft is scheduled to be inducted at Air Force Station Ambala on 29th July, the ministry further informed. The final induction ceremony is mostly likely to be conducted in the second half of August.

5. Scientists identify 37 volcanic structures on Venus that appear to be recently active

37 volcanic structures existing on planet Venus, that appear to be recently active have been identified by the scientists. They further presumed that these volcanoes might be active even today.”Venus is clearly not so geologically dead or dormant as previously thought,” said Anna Gülcher of the Institute of Geophysics in Zurich, an Earth, and planetary scientist. “In my opinion, many of these structures are indeed active today,” said geophysicist Laurent Montesi of the University of Maryland.

6. Neuralink chip will let users stream music directly into brains: Elon Musk

Billionaire Elon Musk has recently said about the chip, developed by Neuralink, a startup he founded to create a data transmission system between people and computers, will now allow its users to stream music directly into their brains. When asked by Austin Howard, a computer scientist, if people could one day listen to music directly through such an interface, Musk replied in affirmative. Mr. Musk, who also heads SpaceX and Tesla, is set to reveal new information about his mysterious startup next month.

7. Hungarian scientists accidentally create a new hybrid of two endangered fish species

Hungarian researchers have accidentally bred a new hybrid of two endangered fish species. They were trying to breed Russian sturgeon through gynogenesis, a method of asexual reproduction. In it, a sperm triggers an egg’s development but fails to fuse with the egg’s nucleus. However, when they used American paddlefish’s sperm for the process, an unexpected hybrid offspring was born. The internet has already nicknamed this hybrid the “sturddlefish”. The sturgeons and paddlefish are the largest, long-lived, slow-growing freshwater fish on the planet.

8. Indian and US warships conduct swift joint navy drill amid tensions with China

Indian and US Navy carrier strike group conducted a swift joint navy drill close to the Andaman and Nicobar islands on Monday, against the backdrop of tension between India and China near LAC in Ladakh. This endeavor involved the US’ nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Nimitz, which was returning from the South China Sea. Indian Navy’s The Eastern Fleet is currently carrying out maneuvers near Andaman and Nicobar Islands. 

9. 18 Underground bunkers are being built in J&K amid ceasefire violations by Pakistan

Villages along the Line of Control (LoC) in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir’s Baramulla district are soon going to be home to eighteen underground bunkers. These are being built in view of ceasefire violations by Pakistan, ANI reported. The move comes days after three members of a family in Poonch district were killed in a ceasefire violation by Pakistan when a shell landed on their house.

10. Former cricketer Irfan Pathan says Kohli will prepare 5-6 players to become superstars

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan has shared his opinion by saying that Virat Kohli, the team captain of India will prepare at least five-six players who will become “Indian cricket’s superstars”. “Kohli’s captaincy is similar to Sourav Ganguly. He gives a solid backing to his players,” Irfan said. “Kohli has the aura about him that he goes out of his way to back the youngsters,” the cricketer further added. Irfan Pathan shared this view on Star Sports’ show ‘Cricket Connected’.