1. Bihar Education Minister resigns after 3 days of taking oath amid corruption allegations
Bihar Education Minister Mewa Lal Choudhary has resigned from the post after three days of taking Oath amid corruption allegations against him. Earlier an old video also surfaced online, wherein Bihar Education Minister Choudhary could be seen singing the National Anthem incorrectly. This comes after opposition party RJD questioned the BJP-led NDA over the appointment of corruption-accused Choudhary as the minister.
2. 5 MBBS seats reserved for children of COVID-19 warriors who died: Govt
The government has reserved five MBBS seats under the central pool for children of COVID-19 warriors for the academic year 2020-21. Harsh Vardhan, Union Health Minister said, ‘’The move will honour the noble contribution made by COVID-19 warriors who lost their lives.’’ Post this announcement, the government approved a new category, ‘’wards of COVID warriors,’’ for the selection of candidates under central pool MBBS seats.
3. About 49% of women officers to continue to serve in force: Army
Indian Army said, ‘’Around 49% of women officers will continue to serve in the force.’’ This was being said after declaring results of first-ever board held for granting permanent commission to women officers. Army sources told ANI that around 320 women officers would retire after 20 years of pensionable service and over 615 women officers were under consideration for being granted permanent commission.
4. Oxford COVID-19 Vaccine to cost Rs 1000. Will be available by February 2021
Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla said, ‘’ The Indian government will get the Oxford vaccine at a ‘much cheaper rate’ and added that it’ll be available at Rs. 500-600 to the general public of India.’’ He further added, ‘’After UK government clears Oxford Vaccine for emergency authorisation, we will apply for it too, it will take some time.’’
5. After Imran Khan criticizes UAE- Israel ties, UAE suspends visit visas for Pak
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has temporarily suspended the new visit visas to visitors from Pakistan, Turkey and 10 other countries until further notice. Pakistan stated that UAE’s decision is ‘’believed to be related to the second wave of Covid-19’’. This though, comes after Pakistan’s PM Imran Khan ridiculed UAE’s move of formalizing its relationship with Israel.
6. Rising India as rival perceive China; wants to check its ties with US: Report
China perceives a rising India as a rival and wants to check its strategic partnership with the US and other democracies. The Chinese government is also attempting to force India to accommodate China’s ambitions by participating economically. ‘’China is undermining the security and economic interests of many others in the region,’’ the US state Department report said.
7. Trump sending a damaging message to the world by not conceding defeat: Biden
US president-elect Joe Biden said, ‘’President Donald Trump is sending ‘incredibly damaging message’ to the rest of world about how democracy functions by not conceding defeat.’’ He added, ‘’I just think it is totally irresponsible.’’ Trump has filed lawsuits in multiple states alleging election fraud and claimed that he’s the rightful winner of the November 3 election.
8. Material made from fruits that creates energy wins sustainability award
A material created from rotting fruits and vegetables that generates renewable energy by absorbing UV light from the sun has received the first James Dyson’s sustainability award. A low-cost biomedical device named the ‘Blue Box’, that can be used to detect breast cancer at home, has been announced as the international winner.
9. 39% of Kashmir’s population has COVID-19 antibodies: Sero survey
A Sero Survey conducted in Kashmir has found that 39% of the population has developed antibodies against COVID-19. Muhammad Salim Khan, head of community medicine at Govenment Medical said that the highest prevalence of the antibodies is in Pulwama(43.1%) and the lowest in Kulgam(28.5%).
10. ‘I feel stupid for not investing early in Amazon, Tesla’: SoftBank CEO
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi son said he feels ‘stupid’ for not investing early in Tesla and Amazon. Son revealed he met Jeff Bezos before Amazon’s IPO and offered $100 million for 30% of Amazon, but Bezos disagreed saying Amazon was a $350-million company. SoftBank as of June 30, 2020, owned $1.04 billion of Amazon stock and Tesla stake Worth$122.9 million.
