Current affairs today 24 july

Spain & Portugal causes more than 1700 wildfires and high temperature

The heatwave has caused over 1,700 deaths on the Iberian peninsula alone, the World Health Organization’s European office said on Friday (July 22).

The Iberian Peninsula is a mountainous region that is most associated with Spain and Portugal.

Not just in Spain and Portugal, the unprecedented heatwave has caused death and destruction across Europe. “Heat kills. Over the past decades, hundreds of thousands of people have died as a result of extreme heat during extended heatwaves, often with simultaneous wildfires,” WHO regional director for Europe Hans Kluge said in a statement.

“This year, we have already witnessed more than 1,700 needless deaths in the present heatwave in Spain and Portugal alone,” Kluge added.

As quoted by the news agency AFP, the regional director further added that exposure to extreme heat “often exacerbates pre-existing health conditions”. The official added that “individuals at either end of life’s spectrum – infants and children, and older people – are at particular risk”.

Airlines can’t deny Disabled people for thier bording

airlines cannot deny boarding to ‘any person on the basis of disability’, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has said that if an airline feels the passenger’s health is likely to deteriorate during the flight, it must consult a doctor at the airport and then take an ‘appropriate decision’.

In a statement on Friday, the DGCA said it has amended its regulations to improve accessibility of boarding and flying for the specially-abled. The move, which was originally proposed on June 3, comes in the backdrop of the incident at the Ranchi airport in May, when IndiGo did not allow a specially-abled child to board its Hyderabad-bound flight, citing potential threat to air safety.

In its new Civil Aviation Requirement (CAR), the DGCA has said that if an airline decides to deny boarding after getting medical opinion, it will have to immediately inform the passenger in writing and mention the reasons.

The clause added to the CAR on ‘carriage by air – persons with disability and/ or persons with reduced mobility’ states: ‘Airline shall not refuse carriage of any person on the basis of disability. However, in case, an airline perceives that the health of such a passenger may deteriorate in-flight, the said passenger will have to be examined by a doctor, who shall categorically state the medical condition and whether the passenger is fit to fly or not. After obtaining the medical opinion, the airline shall take the appropriate call’.

According to the earlier rules, airlines could deny boarding to any person on the basis of disability if it opined that ‘transportation of such persons would or might be inimical to the safety of flight’. The airlines, however, were bound to specify in writing the basis of such refusal.

Following the IndiGo incident, the aviation safety regulator had conducted an investigation and imposed a fine of Rs 5 lakh on the airline. It had noted that the airline’s ground staff could have avoided the situation with ‘more compassionate handling’, but ended up ‘exacerbating’ the situation.

While IndiGo stood by its ground staff’s decision to deny boarding, saying it was done in the interest of flight safety, it later said that it planned to conduct an internal study on how to better serve passengers with disabilities, especially when they are feeling distressed.

State must protect who married irrespective of caste

The State is under constitutional obligation to protect its citizens, especially in cases where marriage between two consenting adults has been solemnised irrespective of caste or community, the Delhi High Court said while directing police to ensure safety of a couple who married against the wishes of their families last month.

The Constitutional Courts under our framework are empowered to pass orders to protect citizens, especially in the cases of the nature to which the present dispute pertains. Once two adults consent to live together as husband and wife, there can be perceivably no interference in their lives from third parties, including their family. Our Constitution ensures it too. It is not only the duty of the State but also its machinery and agencies which ensure law and order to ensure no harm comes to citizens of this country,’ said Justice Tushar Rao Gedela in an order.

The couple married under the Special Marriage Act on June 13. The woman is from UP, and the court was told her father is politically well-connected and capable of influencing the state machinery.

Treat Divorces spouse with gratitude Athithi devo Bhawa Madras High court said

While dealing with a case relating to visitation rights between a divorced couple, the Madras High Court recently emphasised that spouses who had parted ways should treat each other with kindness and empathy in front of the child [ Ganesh Kasinathan v Richa Sharma ].

Justice Krishnan Ramasamy made the observation while noting that he had came across many instances of one spouse ill-treating the other when they came to visit the child.

“The spouse shall treat other spouse, though not as wife/husband due personal indifferences, but at least treat him/her as a guest by paying more attention than wife/husband since in our customs and practice, a guest is treated as “Athidi Devo Bhava (Guest is God)”, the single-judge said.

It was the Court’s opinion that a parent who teaches a child to hate or fear the other parent represents a grave and persistent danger to the mental and emotional health of that child. It observed,

“Every child has a right and need for an unthreatened and loving relationship with both the parents. To be denied that right by one parent, without sufficient justification, is itself a form of child abuse…Hatred is not an emotion that comes naturally to vast majority of children; it has to be taught.”

Justice Ramasamy made the observations in a case where the father of a child was allowed to take the minor to his residence for stipulated times during the week. However, the wife expressed difficulties in implementing the same and sought a modification.

The Court modified the order allowing the father to visit the child at the mother’s residence every Friday and Saturday evening.

It was directed that spouses shall comply with such orders without any deviation and even convince children to spend time with the other parent, should they not wish to as a result of parental alienation.

“In the event there is failure on the part of the spouse who possesses the custody of the child, he/she will be held responsible for non-compliance of the order and ultimately, it would be considered that he/she is incapable of maintaining the child in his/her custody”, the order stipulated.

RBI Impose restrictions on 4 co operative banks

The Reserve Bank has imposed restrictions, including on withdrawals, on four cooperative banks in view of their deteriorating financial positions.

The restrictions have been imposed on Saibaba Janata Sahakari Bank, the Suri Friends’ Union Co-operative Bank Ltd, Suri (West Bengal) and National Urban Co-operative Bank Ltd, Bahraich. A depositor of Saibaba Janata Sahakari Bank cannot withdraw more than Rs 20,000 from the bank while this for the Suri Friends’ Union Co-operative Bank is Rs 50,000. Similarly, in the case of National Urban Co-operative Bank, the limit of withdrawal has been capped at Rs 10,000 per customer. The RBI has also imposed several restrictions on United India Co-operative Bank Limited, Bijnor, including a ban on withdrawals of funds by customers. The directions issued by the RBI to the four cooperative banks under the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, will remain in force for six months. The Reserve Bank has issued separate statements announcing the restrictions on the cooperative banks. In another statement, the RBI said it has imposed a Rs 57.75 lakh penalty on Suryoday Small Finance Bank for violation of certain norms related to ‘frauds classification and reporting by commercial banks and select FIs’.

Monkeypox spread due to sexual activity 95% study analysis

 Sexual closeness is the most likely route of transmission in 95 per cent of monkeypox cases, according to a global case study series from across 16 countries.

However, the virus can be transmitted by any close physical contact through large respiratory droplets and potentially through clothing and other surfaces, said researchers at Queen Mary University of London.

In the study, the team reported 528 infections diagnosed between April 27 and June 24, 2022, at 43 sites in 16 countries.

The findings, published in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), showed 95 per cent of the persons presented with a rash (with 64 per cent having less than 10 lesions), 73 per cent had anogenital lesions, and 41 per cent had mucosal lesions (with 54 having a single genital lesion).

Overall, 98 per cent of the persons with infection were gay or bisexual men, 75 per cent were white, and 41 per cent had human immunodeficiency virus infection.

Common systemic features preceding the rash included fever (62 per cent), lethargy (41 per cent), myalgia (31 per cent), and headache (27 per cent); lymphadenopathy swelling of lymph nodes was also common (reported in 56 per cent). Concomitant sexually transmitted infections were reported in 109 of 377 persons (29 per cent) who were tested.

Among the 23 persons with a clear exposure history, the median incubation period was 7 days. Monkeypox virus DNA was detected in 29 of the 32 persons in whom seminal fluid was analysed.

In addition, the study also identified new clinical presentations in people with monkeypox, not recognised in current medical definitions of monkeypox.

These symptoms include single genital lesions and sores on the mouth or anus. The clinical symptoms are similar to those of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) such as syphilis or herpes and can easily lead to misdiagnosis.

Lok sabha passes Indian Antarctic bill in first session

The Indian Antarctic Bill, 2022, which seeks to extend the jurisdiction of Indian courts to the icy continent, became the first Bill Friday to be cleared by the Lok sabha  during the ongoing monsoon session of the Parliament.

Earth Sciences Minister Jitendra Singh tabled the Bill, which is set to become the first domestic legislation with regard to Antarctica in India, amid protests by the Opposition demanding discussions on price rise.

The Bill seeks to give effect to the Antarctic Treaty, which was signed in 1959 by 12 countries. It was implemented in 1961, and India, which has two permanent scientific stations Matri and Bharti in the continent, became a signatory to it in 1983.

‘The fundamental objective of the treaty is demilitarisation of Antarctica. The signatories are supposed to bring laws so that no activity in contravention of the treaty takes place. The law is supposed to take care of any violations, offer solutions and fix appropriate punishment,’ Singh said.

Apart from extending the jurisdiction of Indian courts to Antarctica for investigation and trial for crimes committed on the Arctic continent, the Bill also introduces regulations to ensure that scientific missions or commercial expeditions do not harm the ecology of the continent.

Participating in a brief discussion on the Bill, BJP MP Jayant Sinha said, ‘India is a coastal country. Goa, Mumbai, Kolkata, Kochi, Chennai and many such places are located along the coast. Any rise in the sea level due to melting of glaciers may cause damage through flooding. That’s why it is essential to understand the impact of global warming on Antarctica.’

Lending his support, BJD MP Bhartruhari Mahtab said the bill aims at promoting Antarctica as a natural reserve that is devoted to science and peace, and to ensure that Antarctica does not become the scene of international discord.

‘That is the basic purpose for which this Bill is being introduced and I believe, cutting across party lines, everybody should support this Bill,’ he said, criticising the Opposition parties for carrying out protests during discussions on it.

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