Amid pandmonium Lok Sabha passed three bills

TOP NEWS IN NUTSHELLS (04 August 2021)

**NATIONAL NEWS**

• LS PASSED 3 BILLS: Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed three bills. They are Essential Defense Services Bill, 2021, Tribunals Reforms Bill, 2021 and Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021.
• OPPOSITIONS MEET: Leaders of fifteen like-minded non-BJP parties attended the breakfast meeting hosted by former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi at the Constitution Club to forge a joint opposition strategy in the face of parliamentary disruptions over the issue of debate on Pegasus spyware matter. However, Aam Aadmi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party skipped this meeting.
• VACCINATION DRIVE: Over 47.58 crore COVID vaccine doses administered so far under Nationwide Vaccination Drive.
• e-COMMERCE MARKET UP: India’s e-Commerce market continues to grow at Year on Year rate of 5 percent despite COVID challenge, as per report from National Association of Software & Services Companies (NASSCOM).
• G & K RIVER MANAGEMENT BOARD: Andhra Pradesh govt intends to take up certain grievances vis-à-vis the declaration of gazette notification on Godavari and Krishna River Management Boards with the Centre for their quick redressal.
• OPPORTUNTITY TO GOA MSMEs: MSMEs from Goa have a major opportunity to participate in Ministry of Defense contracts by partnering with Goa Shipyard Limited. GSL CMD, B B Nagpal said that they have an order book of Rs 14,000 crore and will call for contracts from MSMEs.
• NEW FLIGHTS FROM BHAVNAGAR: SpiceJet will start 16 new flights on Domestic Routes from August 2021.  Bhavnagar in Gujarat will now be connected to Delhi, Mumbai and Surat with direct flights starting 20 Aug.
• CHOPPER CRASH: An Army helicopter crashed in the Ranjit Sagar Dam Lake in Pathankot on Tuesday. The pilot and the co-pilot are missing. Divers   have been pressed into action to search for them.  The chopper belonged to the 254 Army Aviation Squadron. The chopper had taken off from Mamun cantonment 10 minutes before it came down.
• PROBE IN TERROR LINK:  Indian intelligence agencies, along with Army and Jammu and Kashmir Police, are conducting forensic analysis of three iPhones recovered from killed Muhammad Ismail Alvi alias Lambu, to extract the links that the terrorist had with Bahawalpur-based headquarters of the proscribed Jaish-e-Mohammad.
• INVITATION TO OLYMPICE PLAYERS:PM Modi to invite Indian Olympics contingent to be special guests at Independence Day.

**INTERNATIONAL NEWS**

• UNSC MEET ON MARITIME SECURITY: PM Modi will preside over a debate on maritime security at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on August 9. Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said.
• SCO MEETING: Law & Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju will attend the eighth meeting of Ministers of Justice of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on day after tomorrow on August 06.
• IRAN’S NEW PRESIDENT-ELECT:  Foreign Minister S Jaishankar will represent India at  the inauguration of Iranian president-elect Ebrahim Raisi in Tehran on August 5.
• INDIA-UAE DEFENCE TALK: IAF Chief RKS Bhadauria met his UAE counterpart Ibrahim Nasser M Al Alawi.   They discussed on wide-ranging issues to identify avenues and measures for further strengthening the robust relationship between the two forces of both countries.
• RUSSIA ON AFGHANISTAN CRISIS: Russia’s foreign intelligence chief says, his organisation is in close contact with the Indian security establishment over the fast-deteriorating situation in Afghanistan.His comment is seen as signals for closer security partnership between the India and Russia. Meanwhile reports came in that Talibans are unwilling to talk to India unless Govt remains neutral in Afghan conflict.
• MALABAR EXERCISE: All Four QUAD Countries will take part in the next edition f Malabar Exercise. Indian Navy is deploying a naval task group comprising four frontline warships to the South China Sea, Western Pacific and South East Asia for over two months beginning early August. This is India’s significant move aimed at enhancing its profile in the strategically key sea lanes. The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, also known as the QUAD, is a strategic dialogue between the United States, Japan, Australia and India that is maintained by talks between member countries.