Today in History (Apr 20th, 1924)
The Grand National Assembly of Turkey finalized the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire by approving a new republican constitution om 20th April, 1924, with Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, who had previously proclaimed the Turkish republic six months earlier, being elected as the first president of the new republic.
Summary of Today’s News
India’s population to edge ahead of China’s population by mid-2023.
As per the State of the World Population Report, 2023, released by the UN Population Fund, India is set to overtake China to become the world’s most populous country by the middle of 2023. India’s population is estimated to reach 142.86 crore against China’s 142.57 crore. The United States is a distant third with the population of 34 crore. The world’s population hit the 800-crore mark in November, 2022.
Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023
The Union Cabinet cleared the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023, which provides for harsher punishment for film piracy and introduction of new age categories for classifying films. The draft bill proposes three years of imprisonment and Rs. 10 lakhs fine for those engaged in film piracy. It also expands the U/A category to U/A 7+, U/A 13+ and U/A 16+.
National Quantum Mission.
The Union Cabinet approved the Rs. 6,003 crore National Quantum Mission that aims to fund research and development of quantum computing technology and associated applications. It aims to develop intermediate-scale quantum computers with 20-50 physical qubits in next three years. Quantum computing is based on quantum mechanics where units of processing is based on qubits or quantum bits.
Fox News to pay $787.5 million in defamation case.
Fox News reached a $787.5 million settlement in a defamation case brought by voting technology company Dominion that alleged the network (Fox News) knowingly aired false claims linking its machines to a conspiracy to undermine the 2020 U.S. election.
Ukraine receives Patriot Missiles from U.S.
Ukraine has received the U.S.-made Patriot surface-to-air guided missile system to shield itself from Russian airstrikes during the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Patriot Missile is primarily used for defence against ballistic missiles, aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).
