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May 18, 2019: National Current Affairs

1. Govt ponders over electric cars to fight pollution

• Prime Minister Imran Khan on May 17, 2019 chaired a meeting on climate change and decided to introduce electric cars by setting up electric car plants for the first time in the country.
• Adviser to Prime Minister on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam briefed the premier on the climate change.
• The prime minister ordered the authorities concerned to ensure conversion of 30 per cent of all cars running in the country into electric vehicles by 2030.
• On the issue of possibility of heavy rains and flood in Gilgit Baltistan, the meeting was informed that Shisper glacier in Hassanabad village of Hunza was posing a serious threat to residents of the area with each passing day as it has surged by three kilometers.

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2. `Pakistan fails to implement tobacco control framework`

• Prime Minister`s Focal Person on Polio Eradication Babar Bin Atta on May 18, 2019 said Pakistan has failed to implement World Health Organisation (WHO)`s tobacco control framework which is a potential embarrassment for the country.
• In a statement, he said Pakistan had decided to introduce the pictorial warning up to 60 per cent of cigarette packs by the end of this month.
• Mr Atta has recently been appointed as the focal person on tobacco control.
• Soon after taking the charge, Mr Atta held a meeting with tobacco control cellof the Ministry of National Health Services and it was decided that new pictorial health warning on 60pc of the cigarette packets would be introduced on M ay 31.
• The PM Office has been declared 100pc tobacco free. Ban on all advertising, including inside shops, will be ensured.

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3. Sadpara scales Lhotse peak in Nepal

• Renowned Pakistani mountaineer Mohammad Ali Sadpara scaled the 8,516-metre Lhotse peak in Nepal, the fourth highest mountain in the world An organiser of the expedition, Seven Summit Treks confirmed that Sadpara climbed the peak in Nepal.
• He said it was Sadpara`s solo summit, however, Nepalese Sherpas helped him fixing the ropes, adding the mountaineer was descending to the base camp from camp 4 of the peak.
• Sadpara had arrived Nepal in first week of April to summit Makalu (8,485m) peak, the fif th highest in the world. He plans to climb the peak, next week.
• Summit of Lhotse was not part of his plan, however, he did the adventure as part of acclimatisation.

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May 18, 2019: International Current Affairs

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4. East Timor to become world`s first plastic-neutral nation

• In a region where seas are awash with trash, East Timor is set to become the world`s first country to recycle all its plastic waste after it teamed up with Australian researchers on May 17, 2019 to build a revolutionary recycling plant.
• The $40-million plant will ensure that no plastic, once used in the Southeast Asian nation, would become waste, but would instead be turned into new products.
• Dili said it had signed a memorandum of understanding with Australia`s Mura Technology to establish a non-profit called RESPECT that will run the plastic recycling plant, expected tolaunchby the end of 2020.

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5. Taiwan approves same-sex marriage in first for Asia

• Taiwan`s parliament legalised same-sex marriage on May 17, 2019 in a landmark first for Asia as the government survived a last-minute attempt by conservatives to pass watered-down legislation.
• Lawmakers comfortably passed a bill allowing same-sex couples to form `exclusive permanent unions` and another clause that would let them apply for a `marriage registration` with government agencies.
• The vote which took place on the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia is a major victory for the island`s LGBT community and it places the island at the vanguard of Asia`s burgeoning gay rights movement.

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6. US air strikes kill 17 Afghan policemen by mistake

• US air strikes killed 17 policemen by mistake during a battle with insurgents in the country`s southern Helmand province, Afghan and US military officials said on May 17, 2019.
• Attaullah Afghan, head of the provincial council, said the air strikes took place around 9pm local time on Thursday outside the province`s capital of Lashkar Gah, during clashes between Afghan police and the Taliban. Afghan added 14 policemen were also wounded in the strikes.
• Deadly incidents of friendly fire in US military support for its Afghan allies have happened before, but are not common. Afghanistan`s beleaguered security forces come under near daily attacks by Taliban insurgents even as the US is trying to broker a peace deal to end nearly 18 years of war.

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7. Trump tells Pentagon chief he doesn`t want war with Iran

• Senior officials in Washington have begun looking for ways to defuse tensions with Tehran after President Donald Trump has made it clear that he doesn`t want a war with Iran, sources say.
• The New York Times has reported that during a meeting Mr Trump told his acting defence secretary, Patrick Shanahan, that he does not want to go to war with Iran.
• The president`s statement was meant to apprise his hawkish aides that he did not want the intensifying US pressure campaign against the Iranians to turn into an open conflict, said the newspaper.
• According to another statement, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the leader of Oman, Sultan Qaboos bin Said, to discuss the threat posed by Iran. Oman has long been seen as an intermediary between the West and Iran.

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8. Some 250,000 Rohingya refugees receive first ID cards: UN

• The United Nations said on May 17, 2019 it has registered more than 250,000 Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, providing many with their first ever identification cards and proof of their right to return to Myanmar in the future.
• The UN refugee agency also said the registration could serve as a tool for law enforcement to help counter human trafficking.
• `Over a quarter of a million Rohingya refugees from Myanmar have now been jointly registered and provided with identity cards by Bangladesh authorities and UNHCR, spokesman Andrej Mahecic told reporters in Geneva.
• Some 740,000 Rohingya refugees fled a military crackdown in August 2017 to cross into Bangladesh where 300,000 members of the persecuted Muslim minority were already in camps.

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May 18, 2019: Sports Current Affairs

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9. World Cup winners to get record $4m prize money

• The winners of the upcoming World Cup in England will receive a record $4 million (3.1 million) for lifting the trophy, the International Cricket Council announced on May 17, 2019.
• In all a total of $10 million is on offer during the showpiece men`s One-day International tournament, which starts later this month and lasts 46 days.
• As well as the champions` pay-out, each team that wins a group stage match will receive $40,000 (31,000), with the losing semi-finalists collecting $800,000 (625,000) and the runners-up banking $2 million (1.56 million).
• Tournament hosts and favourites England, bidding to win the trophy for the first time, will open the World Cup when they face South Africa at The Oval in south London on May 30.

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10. England take unassailable lead in series

• England took an unassailable 3-0 lead in the one-day series against Pakistan after winning the fourth match at Trent Bridge, Nottingham, by three wickets on May 17, 2019.
• England overwhelmed a daunting target of 341 thanks to electrifying knocks by opener Jason Roy (114) and Ben Stokes(71not out).
• Earlier Pakistan were unable to cash in on Babar Azam`s century as they were restricted to 340 for seven after being 178 for one in 30 overs..
• The innings fell apart after a century stand between Babar (115) and Mohammad Hafeez (59).

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