26 July 2016 Current Affairs
Parliament passes Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2016
Parliament has passed the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2016. The bill was first passed in Rajya Sabha and later in Lok Sabha during Monsoon session of Parliament. It seeks to amend the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, 1986 to widen the scope of the law against child labour and stricter punishments for violations. The Bill calls for complete ban employment of children below 14 in all occupations and enterprises, except those run by his or her own family. It defines children between 14 to 18 years as adolescents and bars their employment in any hazardous occupations.
Brazil free of measles: WHO
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared Brazil free of measles, after no case of the disease was registered in the last year. The eradication of measles is the conclusion of work spanning several years. Brazil saw no domestic cases of measles from 1985 to 2000, although it broke out in 2013 in the northeastern states of Pernambuco and Ceara. The WHO will issue a certification for the eradication of measles to Brazil. Measles can be transmitted orally, through mucus or saliva and mainly affects children. It can be spread rapidly through the air due to sneezing or a cough, and the first symptoms appear after 10 days with red spots on the skin.
Rio bound shot putter Inderjeet Singh fails dope test: NADA
India’s Rio Olympics bound shot putter Inderjeet Singh has been tested positive for a banned substance. In the out-of-competition test conducted by National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), Inderjeet’s ‘A’ sample was tested positive for a banned steroid. The NADA has asked Inderjeet Singh if he wants to test his ‘B’ sample and if so, to do this within seven days. If his ‘B’ sample also tests positive, he will have to miss 2016 Rio Olympics Games in August 2016. Besides, he may be banned for four years under the new WADA Code.
MHA sets up T V S N Prasad Committee to explore possible alternatives to pellet guns in Kashmir
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has setup a seven-member expert committee for exploring the other possible alternatives to pellet guns as non-lethal weapons. The Committee will be headed by T V S N Prasad, Joint Secretary in the MHA. It will submit its report within two months. Earlier Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh had announced in Lok Sabha that an expert committee will be set up to recommend alternatives to pellet guns. Pellet guns have been categorised as non-lethal weapon. In this gun, pellets are loaded with lead balls and once fired disperse into huge numbers.
Bezwada Wilson and T.M. Krishna win Ramon Magsaysay Award
Two Indians, social activist Bezwada Wilson and musician TM Krishna, have won the prestigious Ramon Magsaysay Award 2016. They are among the total six awardees selected for the 2016 Ramon Magsaysay Award, often regarded as Asia’s Nobel Prize. He has been recognized for asserting the inalienable right to a life of human dignity. He is the National Convener of the Safai Karmachari Andolan (SKA). He has done remarkable work in liberating scores of people engaged in manual scavenging across the country.
Permanent Court of Arbitration rules against Antrix Corporation in Devas case
The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) tribunal in The Hague, Netherlands has ruled against Antrix Corporation in the case with Devas Corporation over sharing of spectrum on satellites. A PCA tribunal has found that the Union Government’s actions in annulling a contract between Devas and Antrix Corporation Ltd. It also found that it has denied Devas commercial use of S-band spectrum constituted an expropriation (state actions in modifying the property rights of an individual in the exercise of its sovereignty. Following the ruling, India may have to give 1 billion compensation to Devas.