1. SC orders FIRs against Nupur Sharma to be clubbed: The Supreme Court ordered multiple FIRs against BJP’s former spokesperson Nupur Sharma to be clubbed and offered her protection from arrest, accepting her counsel Maninder Singh’s argument over threats to her life.
2. Center okays Corbevax as heterologous booster: Government has given a nod to use Biological E’s Corbevax vaccine as a heterologous booster in adults who have completed their second dose of either Covishied or Covaxin.
3. Three terrorists gunned down in Budgam: Security forces in Jammu and Kashmir gunned down three terrorists of ‘The Resistance Force (TRF)’ linked to Lashkar -e- Taiba in Budgam district. The slain included Terrorist commander Lateef Rather, whom the Police said was involved in the murder of Revenue clerk Rahul Bhat, and TV artiste Amreena Bhat.
4. Skies now open for transgender pilot aspirants: The Directorate General of Civil Aviation has given guidelines for aeromedical evaluation of aspiring transgender candidates who want to become pilots. The move would create an opportunity for non-binary pilots to join commercial airlines.
5. Airfares set to soar with fare bands ending this month: As the minimum and maximum fare caps set during the pandemic end by Aug 31, airfares are likely to get costlier. The government’s move to do away with fare bands introduced on May 25, 2020, is expected to revive the pandemic-hit aviation sector.
6. Links to cult triggers cabinet reshuffle in Japan: Following public angst over the Liberal Democratic Party’s (LDP) link with the controversial Unification Church, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida has reshuffled his cabinet of ministers. The Unification Church, founded in South Korea in 1950, is under criticism after former PM Shinzo Abe’s murder suspect blamed the cult for his mother’s bankruptcy.
7. The Canteen lets you know the Carbon footprint of what you eat: A vegetarian restaurant in Southeast England called ‘The Canteen’ lets diners know how much carbon emission their choice of food produces. With nations striving to limit soaring global temperature, the menu allows people to choose planet-friendly platter.
8. The plight after rains in Seoul resembles scenes from the Oscar-winning movie ‘Parasite’: Seoul witnessed the heaviest rains the country has seen in 115 years. At least six people are reportedly missing, and some 570 are temporarily rendered homeless.
9. Fire blazes forests in France yet again, possibly due to arson this time: After 15,000 acres of forests were gutted in mere 24 hours in the Landiras blaze last month, a wildfire got reignited in Southwestern France, possibly due to arson.
10. London to launch vaccine campaign to promote booster shots for Polio: Britain will administer kids aged 1-9 Polio booster shots through GPs. Sewage samples in London have revealed the presence of the virus, which is now spreading again in the capital after the 1980s.
Image: PTI