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July 19, 2019
1. Pakistan to give Jadhav consular access
• In an important announcement, the Foreign Office said on July 18, 2019 that consular access would be granted to Kulbhushan Jadhav, the Indian spy sentenced by Pakistan on charges of espionage and terrorism.
• It said that as a responsible state Pakistan would grant consular access to Jadhav according to the country`s laws, for which modalities were being worked out.
• The FO in a press release said that pursuant to the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Commander Jadhav had been informed of his rights under Article 36, Paragraph 1(b) of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.
• The Hague-based court on July 17, 2019 rejected India`s request for acquittal, release and return of Commander Jadhav.
• However, the ICJ asked Pakistan to provide consular access to him under the Vienna Convention.
• ICJ Headquarters is located in: The Hague, Netherlands
2. Pakistan high risk country for media pluralism: report
• A collaborative research study, the Media Ownership Monitor (MOM) Pakistan carried out by the global media rights organisation Reponers Without Borders and Pakistani media watchdog Freedom Network has found Pakistan a `high risk country` in terms of media pluralism.
• The study says more than half of the mass media ownership in Pakistan is concentrated in only a few hands.
• `This means Pakistan needs more broad-based media ownership to ensure greater diversity in news sources,` Iqbal Khattak, executive director of Freedom Network, said to underscore the impudence of this unique research which the stakeholders could use to debate whether or not the country needs more diversity in its media ownership as well as news and views.
• MOM is available at http:Npakistan.mom-rsf.org both in English and Urdu.
• For the study, a team of researchers worked for eight months to retrieve and analyse all available data from official and non-official sources, including the government, media houses and their owners.
3. Sindh approves Rs13bn schemes
• The Sindh Provincial Development Working Party (PDWP) approved four schemes at a cost of Rs12.98 billion on July 18, 2019.
• The schemes for the current fiscal were approved in a PDWP meeting presided over by Chairperson Planning and Development Board Naheed Shah Durrani.
• One health department scheme was approved for establishment of psychiatry and accident/emergency units at Sindh Government Hospital in Saudabad, Karachi at a cost of Rs518.116 million.
• Two schemes approved in local government include the Lyari Express Re-Settlement Project (LERP) worth Rs8,719.380m and rehabilitation and extension of 5 million gallons per day (MGD) Pressure Rapid Filtration Plant (total 10 MGD) at Unit No.4 Latif abad, Hyderabad worth Rs745.090m.
• One scheme was approved for the Planning and Development Department.
• Current Chairperson Planning and Development Board,Sindh: Naheed Shah Durrani
4. Japan to provide $5.2m for agri project
• Japan will provide $5.2 million for the execution of a UN agro-food and industrial development project in Pakistan.
• In this regard, country representative United Nations Industrial Development Organisation on July 18, 2019 had a meeting with the federal minister to discuss the different features of the project.
• The project aims to strengthen cattle meat and fruit production through the introduction of new techniques.
• This, the UN agency believes, will improve livelihoods of farmers and reduce rural poverty in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan.
• Current Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research is Sahibzada Muhammad Mehboob Sultan
July 19, 2019: International Current Affairs
5. US bars Turkey from F-35 stealth fighter programme
• The White House confirmed on July 18, 2019 that Turkey would be excluded from the F-35 stealth fighter jet programme after it purchased a Russian missile defence system in defiance of warnings from Western allies.
• `Unfortunately, Turkey`s decision to purchase Russian S-400 air defence systems renders its continued involvement with the F-35 impossible,` White House spokeswoman Stephanie Grisham said in a statement.
• The US-made F-35 Joint Strike Fighter `cannot coexist with a Russian intelligence collection platform that will be used to learn about its advanced capabilities` she added.
• Turkey`s foreign ministry termed the move `unfair`, saying in a statement that `this one-sided step neither complies with the spirit of alliance nor is it based on legitimate reasons`.
• Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu is the current Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey (appointed on 29 August 2014)
6. India reschedules Moon mission
• India will make a new bid to launch a landmark mission to the Moon on July 22, 2019, a week after aborting lift-off at the last minute because of a fuel leak.
• The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said it had rescheduled the launch of Chandrayaan-2, or Moon Chariot-2, for 2:43pm (0913 GMT) on July 22, 2019.
• India is aiming to become just the fourth nation after Russia, the United States and China to land a spacecraft on the Moon.
• Indian space chiefs called off the planned launch of the rocket 56 minutes before blast-off on Monday morning because of what ISRO called a `technical snag`. Media reports quoted ISRO scientists saying a helium fuel leak had been detected.
• India has spent about $140 million on preparations for the project, which is one of the cheapest among international space powers.
• By comparison, the United States spent about $25 billion the equivalent of more than $100 billion in current prices on 15 Apollo missions in the 1960s and 70s.
• Current ISRO Chairperson: K. Sivan
7. Iran Guards seize `foreign tanker accused of smuggling fuel
• Iran`s Revolutionary Guards said on July 18, 2019 they had detained a `foreign tanker` and its 12 crew for allegedly smuggling fuel, the latest incident in a tense standoff in the Gulf.
• The announcement came after Tehran said it had come to the aid of a foreign tanker after receiving a distress call, but made no mention of the vessel being seized.
• The Guards did not confirm whether the vessel they had detained on Sunday in the highly sensitive Strait of Hormuz was the same ship as that mentioned on Tuesday by the foreign ministry.
• `With a capacity of two million barrels and 12 foreign crew on board, the vessel was en route to deliver contraband fuel received from Iranian boats to foreign ships in farther regions when it was intercepted,` the force`s Sepahnews website said.
• The ship was seized south of the Iranian island of Larak, the Guards said, without detailing its name or provenance.
8. `Friendly` robots spruce up Singapore
• Hundreds of `friendly` robots that speak multiple languages and sing are being rolled out across hi-tech Singapore, to help clean the city-state`s hotels, shopping malls and government buildings.
• Four of the robots, which have oval shaped heads with lights for eyes, have already got down to work and it is hoped that 300 will be put into service by March next year.
• They scrub, mop, vacuum and sweep autonomously, and can entertain by rapping in English.
• The robots speak all four of multiethnic Singapore`s official languages English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil plus Japanese and `Singlish`, a local patois that mixes English with words from the myriad local tongues.
• The devices, which come in 13 different models and are produced by local company LionsBot, also tell jokes or ask humans to move aside if they are in the way.
9. 33 die in `arson attack` on Japanese studio
• A suspected arson attack at an animation production company in Japan killed 33 people and injured dozens more on July 18, 2019, after a man reportedly doused the building with flammable liquid and shouted `drop dead`.
• A motive for the apparent attack remained unclear hours after the blaze. If arson is confirmed, the attack will be among the deadliest criminal acts in decades in Japan, where violent crime is extremely rare.
• The fire gutted the three storey building in the city of Kyoto that housed Kyoto Animation, which is behind famous anime television productions. The incident sparked an outpouring of support from the industry and fans worldwide, including a viral fundraising campaign.
• Late on Thursday evening, a local fire department official said the toll stood at 33 dead.
• `Of the 33, two were found on the ground floor, 11 on the second and 20 on the third and also on the staircases that lead to the rooftop,` the official said.
July 19, 2019: Sports Current Affairs
10. Germany win world open water relay
• Germany won the mixed 5-kilometre open water team relay at the world swimming championships in a close finish over Italy and the United States on July 18, 2019.
• The German quartet of Lea Boy, Sarah Kohler, Soeren Meissner and Rob Muffels finished in a time of 53 minutes, 58.70 seconds.
• Italy, with Rachele Bruni, Giulia Gabbrielleschi, Domenico Acerenza and Gregorio Paltrinieri, was two-tenths of a second behind in a time of 53.58.90.
• Haley Anderson, Jordan Willmovsky, Ashley Twichell and Michael Brinegar made up the American team which finished just three-tenths of a second behind Germany to take bronze in 53:59.00.
• There are two males and two females on each team who swim 1.25 kilometres each, but the order in which they swim is up to the individual country.
