Here are the top 5 news updates of July 29, 2021:
Israeli government authorities inspected the office of the spyware company NSO Group. The Israeli Defense Ministry on Wednesday said that government officials met with the company's representatives. The Defense Ministry regulates all military exports, including cybersecurity products, and private companies like NSO must receive approval to do business abroad. “Representatives of several bodies visited the office of NSO in order to assess the allegations raised in regards to the company,” the ministry said. But some international and local Israeli media called it a "raid." The NSO Group later clarified that it was just a "visit" not a "raid". "We can confirm that representatives from the Israeli Ministry of Defense visited our offices. We welcome their inspection," said NSO Group officials. The company added that it is “working in full transparency with the Israeli authorities.”
Aditya Ghosh, former president, IndiGo will be co-founder of Rakesh Jhunjhunwala's low-budget newest airline Akasa Air, along with former Jet Airways CEO Vinay Dube, sources told The Economic Times. According to the financial daily, Ghosh would own less than 10 percent of Akasa and will not be part of the management but will be on board as Jhunjhunwala’s nominee. In an interview to Bloomberg, Jhunjhunwala had said he would hold 40 percent stake and Dube will have 15 percent, besides the post as CEO of the airline. He expects to get a no-objection certificate from the Ministry of Civil Aviation in the next 15 days. Investors in Akasa include Airbnb and PAR Capital Management – which has interests in US ULCC Sun Country Airlines. The ultra-low cost airline plans to have a fleet of 70 aircrafts in four years.
The Centre today announced a 27-per cent quota for OBCs and 10 per cent reservation for the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) category in the All-India Quota (AIQ) scheme for undergraduate and postgraduate medical and dental courses from the current academic year, 2021-22. Hailing the "landmark decision" taken by his government, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted: "This will immensely help thousands of our youth every year get better opportunities and create a new paradigm of social justice in our country." "This decision would benefit nearly 1,500 OBC students in MBBS and 2,500 OBC students in postgraduation and also around 550 EWS students in MBBS and around 1,000 EWS students in postgraduation," the health ministry said in a statement.
Under pressure from the opposition over the gang rape of two minor girls on a beach, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant is facing flak for remarking in the state Assembly that parents need to introspect on why their children were on the beach late at night. "When 14-year-olds stay on the beach the whole night, the parents need to introspect. Just because children don't listen, we cannot put the responsibility on the government and police," Sawant had said on Wednesday. Sawant, who also holds the home portfolio, had said parents have a responsibility to ensure the safety of their children and hinted that they should not let their children, particularly minors, out at night. Since then, a slew of Opposition leaders as well as ordinary netizens have taken to social media platforms to criticise him.
Snapping its three-session losing streak, equity benchmark Sensex rose 209 points today following gains in Tata Steel, SBI and Reliance Industries amid a positive trend in global markets. The 30-share BSE index climbed 209.36 points or 0.40 per cent to close at 52,653.07, while the broader NSE Nifty advanced 69.05 points or 0.44 per cent to 15,778.45. Tata Steel was the top gainer in the Sensex pack, rallying nearly 7 per cent, followed by Bajaj Finserv, SBI, HCL Tech, Sun Pharma, Bajaj Finance and Reliance Industries. On the other hand, Maruti, PowerGrid, Bajaj Auto and ITC were among the laggards.
