DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS 1st – 2nd August 2021
COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage Crosses the Landmark of 46 Cr
- India’s Cumulative COVID-19 Vaccination Coverage crosses the landmark of 46 Cr.
- Recovery Rate stands at 97.37%.
- India’s Active Caseload (4,08,920) presently constitutes 1.29% of total cases.
- Daily Positivity Rate (2.34%) less than 5% for 54 consecutive days.
“Muslim Women Rights Day” Observed Across India
- “Muslim Women Rights Day” was observed by different organizations across the country today.
- The Day marked bringing the law against the practice of Triple Talaq on 1st August 2019 which has made the social malpractice of Triple Talaq a criminal offense.
- They said that the Government has strengthened “self-reliance, self-respect and self-confidence” of the Muslim women of the country and protected their constitutional, fundamental, and democratic rights by bringing the law against Triple Talaq.
- Talaq is an Islamic word for divorce, denoting dissolution of marriage when a Muslim man can severe all marital ties with his wife by simply uttering the word ‘talaq’ three times.
- This instant divorce is called Triple Talaq, also known as ‘talaq-e-biddat’.
- The other two are ‘talaq-e-ahsan’ and ‘talaq-e-hasan’ is, that in the former there is a single pronouncement of ‘talaq’ followed by abstinence during the period of ‘iddat’, whereas, in the latter there are three pronouncements of ‘talaq’, interspersed with abstinence.
- The Muslim Personal Law (Shariat) Application Act of 1937 had legalized and allowed the practice of Triple Talaq which gave a Muslim husband special privileges over his wife.
Shri Deepak Das takes Charge as New Controller General of Accounts (CGA)
- Shri Deepak Das, a 1986-batch Indian Civil Accounts Service (ICAS) officer, is appointed by the Government of India as the Controller General of Accounts (CGA), Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, with effect from August 1, 2021.
- Shri Deepak Das is the 25th officer to hold the position of Controller General of Accounts (CGA).
- While CAG is independent constitutional body (Article 148), CGA works under Ministry of Finance and not a constitutional or statutory body.
- CGA it derives its mandate from Article 150 of the constitution which says: The accounts of the Union and of the States shall be kept in such form as the President may, on the advice of the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India, prescribe.
- While President lays down general principles of government accounting relating to union/state governments and form of accounts on the advice of CAG (article 150), CGA does the maintenance works of them.
Commemoration of the 100th year of the Madras Legislative Council
- The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind will grace and address the event and unveil a portrait of the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Dr Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi in Chennai today (August 2, 2021).
- The first elected legislature in the State, originally called the Madras Legislative Council, was established in 1921 under the Government of India Act, 1919.
- Under the Government of India Act, 1919, the first general election to the Madras Legislative Council was held in December 1920.
- The Congress party did not participate in the election due to its non-cooperation movement, and the Justice Party registered a tremendous victory, capturing 63 out of 98 seats.
- The Justice Party, officially the South Indian Liberal Federation, was established in 1916 by Dr C. Natesa Mudaliar, T. M. Nair, P. Theagaraya Chetty because of a series of non-Brahmin conferences and meetings in the presidency.
PV Sindhu Wins Bronze at Tokyo Olympics
- P V Sindhu scripted history on Sunday as she defeated, He Bing Jiao of China to become the first Indian woman to win two individual Olympic medals.
- Sindhu defeated He Bing Jiao 21-13 and 21-15 in the bronze medal match.
- Sindhu had suffered a heart-breaking loss to world no.1 Tai Tzu Ying in the semi-final on Saturday. Sindhu lost the semi-final 18-21, 12-21.
Indian Railways Registers Zero Passenger Fatalities
- The Ministry of Railways has informed that there have been zero passenger fatalities in the consequential train accidents over Indian Railways during the last two years i.e., 2019-20 and 2020-21.
- Furthermore, during the last five years, 2016-17 to 2020-21, the number of consequential train accidents has shown a continuous decreasing trend. In 2016-17, the number of the accident was 104 which significantly declined to 22 in 2020-21.
- These train accidents can be collisions, derailments, fire or explosion in trains, road vehicles colliding with trains at level crossings, or certain specified types of miscellaneous train mishaps.
- These accidents may be caused due to the failure of railway staff or persons other than railway staffs, equipment, happening of a combination of factors, or happening of incidental causes such as sinkage of tracks due to an act of nature, or cattle accident on the track, etc.
India Assumes UNSC Presidency for August
- India took over from France to assume the presidency of the UNSC for the month of August.
- This is the first presidency for India during its 2021-22 tenure as a non-permanent member of the UNSC.
- During its term, India will organize three high-level signature meetings focusing on maritime security, peacekeeping, and counterterrorism.
- The UNSC is composed of 15 members, 5 permanent and 10 non-permanent.
- Five permanent members: China, France, the Russian Federation, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
- Ten non-permanent members: Elected for two-year terms by the General Assembly.
- Each year, the General Assembly elects five non-permanent members (out of ten in total) for a two-year term. The ten non-permanent seats are distributed on a regional basis.
- As stipulated in rule 144 of the rules of procedure, a retiring member is not eligible for immediate re-election.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
- ‘Self-Respect Movement’ was founded by?
- S Ramanathan
- E V Ramasamy
- T. M. Nair
- C. Natesa Mudaliar,
ANSWER: A
- He is also known as ‘Father of the Dravidian movement’.
- S Ramanathan
- E V Ramasamy
- T. M. Nair
- C. Natesa Mudaliar
ANSWER: B
- The first woman driver of Indian Railways, _____ drove all women-staffed Mumbai-Lucknow Special train on International Women’s Day (08th March 2021).
- Surekha Yadav
- Subhashini Kumari
- Anjali Jadav
- M R Gopika
ANSWER: A
- The first railway proposals for India were made in Madras in_____.
- 1832
- 1833
- 1834
- 1835
ANSWER: A
- India’s first passenger train ran from Bombay to Thane in _____.
- 1852
- 1853
- 1854
- 1855
ANSWER: B
- ______located in Mumbai was the first railway station in India from where India’s first passenger train ran to Thane in 1853.
- Dadar
- Kalyan
- Bhiwandi
- Bori Bunder
ANSWER: D
- Victoria Terminus was built in_____, named after Queen Victoria.
- 1886
- 1887
- 1888
- 1889
ANSWER: C
- Four sites of Indian Railways have been declared as “World Heritage sites” by the UNESCO. Which one is not among them.
- Darjeeling-Himalayan Railway
- Nilgiri Mountain
- Mumbai CST
- Kalka-Shimla Railways
- None of the Above
ANSWER: E
- Toilets were introduced on Indian Railways in _____.
- 1909
- 1910
- 1919
- 1935
ANSWER: A
- According to the ______in 1920-21, the railway finances of India were separated from the general government finances in 1924.
- Acworth Committee
- Hunter Committee
- Simon Committee
- Edward Committee
ANSWER: A
