1. JEE Main exam to be held from July 18-23 and NEET on July 26
The HRD minister Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank has announced that the JEE Main exam for admission into engineering colleges will be held from July 18 to 23 while the NEET exam for admission into medical colleges will be held on July 26. The minister also announced that the JEE (Advanced) exam will be held in August the exam dates of which will be announced later.
2. All members of the ‘Bois Locker Room’ Instagram group identified by Delhi Police
An Instagram group named as ‘Bois Locker Room’ operated by schoolboys from South Delhi has gained the attention of the whole nation in no time because of the activity carried out by them in this group. The members of the group were sharing pictures of girls (their classmates and other underage girls) without their consent and were also passing lewd and obscene comments revolving around body shaming to cracking jokes on sexual assault and rape. The screenshot of this was passed to a wider audience on Instagram and other social networking platforms as well, after which the authorities were reported of the same. A teen belonging to that group was identified by the police after which he helped the Delhi Police cyber cell take the other 20 members of the group into custody too.
3. Indian photographers awarded the Pulitzer prize for photos of lockdown in Kashmir
Dar Yasin, Mukhtar Khan and Channi Anand, three Indian photographers working with the Associated Press news agency have won the 2020 Pulitzer Prize in feature photography for their coverage on Kashmir during the lockdown that was implemented post the revocation of Article 370. The Pulitzer Prize is the most prestigious award in journalism globally.
4. African Swine Fever detected in India for the 1st time. Kills 2,500 pigs in Assam
India’s Assam reports the rise of African Swine Fever for the first time ever. The disease has killed over 2,500 pigs across 306 villages in Assam. The central government has granted the local authorities in Assam to begin the culling of pigs affected by the African Swine Fever (ASF). The authorities of Assam have confirmed that a thousand pigs that have died due to ASF and not classical swine fever. Local farmers, however, believe that more than 30,000 pigs were killed in just two weeks.
5. Google, Apple to ban location tracking in their joint COVID-19 contact tracing app
Google and Apple together have decided to ban the use of location tracking in their apps that make use of the new contact tracing system the two companies are developing to help contain the spread of the novel coronavirus. The two companies are working together to create a technology that helps individuals detect people who have been near those tested positive for COVID-19. The companies, however, plan to allow only public health officials to use this technology.
6. Tiger Woods says “Running over 30 miles week destroyed my body and knees”
Popular golfer and five-time masters winner Tiger Woods during a recent question-and-answer session with fans cautioned aspiring golfers to about the pitfalls of taking up running. During this session, he was asked what he would like to tell his younger self, to which he said, “Not to run so much”. He further added, “Running over 30 miles (around 50 km) a week for probably my first 5-6 years on tour…destroyed my body and knees.”
7. IGNOU postpones its June term end exam 2020 amid lockdown
Taking into consideration the extended lockdown situation, The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) had postponed its June, 2020 Term End Examinations (TEE), which were earlier scheduled to take place from June 1, 2020. The revised set of dates for exams will be decided later after observing the lockdown situations and the new dates will be announced 15 days prior to the decided date for the commencement of the examination. About 5 lakh students are expected to appear for IGNOU TEE twice in a year.
8. India becomes pharmacy of the world. Provided medical supplies to 123 countries: PM
During a video-conference of leaders of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM), India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that “India’s civilization sees the whole world as one family. As we care for our own citizens, we are also extending help to other countries…India is regarded as a pharmacy of the world, especially for affordable medicines.” He sid this while putting forth the role India has played in providing assistance during COVID-19 times to the world. Mr. Modi went on to inform the NAM conference participants that “India has provided medical supplies to 123 partner countries, including 59 members of NAM, notwithstanding its domestic requirement.”
9. India sends flights & naval ships to evacuate Indians stranded in the Middle East
To evacuate travelers from foreign countries stuck in India and to bring back Indians stuck in foreign countries, the union government of India has penned down a well structured and detailed plan. The evacuation is to begin from Thursday with two flights coming from the UAE that will drop 409 passengers to Kerala. Alongside this, the Indian Navy too, has deployed three vessels for the evacuation operation. “The Navy has deployed three vessels – two to the Maldives and one to Dubai on Monday night. INS Shardul is expected to dock at Dubai on Thursday and the details of evacuation will be decided by the consulate. It will take two days for the vessel to reach Kochi from Dubai. Details of the evacuation plan and deployment of more ships are expected to be announced by today afternoon,” a navy spokesperson told the Indian Express. Further, 64 flights will fly to bring around 15000 Indians from May 7 to May 14.
10. Researchers claim planets with hydrogen-rich atmospheres could support survival
Researchers at MIT have found in their observation that Microbes can survive in an atmosphere of pure hydrogen. While conducting a lab experiment, these researchers positioned yeast and E. coli in small bottles compromising of nutrient-rich broth and then replaced the oxygen-rich air present in the bottle with 100% hydrogen. This experiment of theirs found that the microbes continued to reproduce and grow. The environment in which these microbes grew is very different from that that exists on Earth which is rich in Nitrogen and Oxygen.
11. Indian women’s hockey team raises Rs 20 lakh for coronavirus relief efforts
The Indian women’s hockey team raised funds of Rs 20 lakh to help the nation in the fight against the Covid-19 pandemic. This amount was raised through an 18-day fitness challenge, that ended on May 3 and resulted in collecting a total of Rs 20, 01,130. The funds have been donated to the Delhi-based NGO Uday Foundation. The funds will be put to use by providing basic necessities to patients, migrant workers, and slum dwellers.
12. FIR filed against Punjabi singer for firing AK-47 rifle with policemen
A video of Punjabi singer Sidhu Moosewala firing AK-47 rifle with policemen went viral after which an FIR was registered against him. Along with him, 9 others and 5 police officials from Barnala have also been charged who allegedly made the arrangements of the rifle for the singer. DSP Headquarters Sangrur, Daljit Singh Virk too has been suspended due to the same reason. In the video that went viral, the police officials are seen teaching Sidhu on how to use the rifle.
