Today in History (July 28th, 1914)
On this day in 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia after the assassination of Austrian Archduke Francis Ferdinand in Sarajevo. The incident sparked the World War I, which lasted for 4 years, 3 months and 14 days.
Summary of Today’s News
Supreme Court extends Enforcement Directorate Director’s tenure
The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India extended in a special hearing extended Enforcement Directorate (ED) Director Sanjay Kumar Mishra’s tenure till September 15, 2023, to serve “public and national interest”. The court had declared his continuation as ED Director “invalid and illegal” in a judgment on July 11. It had directed him to quit office by July 31, 2023.
Circular Economy
Embracing a circular economy model enables transition from the linear “take-make-waste” paradigm and embrace a more sustainable and regenerative approach, said Union Minister Bhupender Yadav at the launch of Resource Efficiency Circular Economy Industry Coalition (RE-CEIC) on the sidelines of the fourth G20 Environment and Climate Sustainability Working Group (ECSWG) and Environment and Climate Ministers’ meeting in Chennai. It was attended by Ministers of seven countries such as Mauritius, Denmark, Italy, Canada, the UAE, France, and the European Union.
Women’s Reservation Bill
The Women’s Reservation Bill or the Constitution (108th Amendment) Bill, which proposes 33 per cent reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, was passed in March 2010 in the Rajya Sabha but the 15th Lok Sabha could not pass the bill. The Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Thursday informed the Rajya Sabha that the women’s reservation Bill requires “careful consideration” on the basis of a consensus among all political parties before it is brought to Parliament.
Heatwaves in Kerala
As many as 120 people died in Kerala from heatwaves till June-end, the highest in the country, said a Health Ministry statement in the Lok Sabha. Kerala was followed by Gujarat with 35 deaths, Telangana, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh 12 each, West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh. The States have been told to prepare heat health sector plan with focus on awareness building, upgrade of health system capacity and strengthening of health infrastructure to treat heat-related illness and reduce the number of deaths.