Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 06 January 2022

SSC CGL Current Affairs

Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 06 January 2022

::NATIONAL::

Petition in Supreme Court against Bombay HC norms on sexual harassment cases

A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court against a Bombay high court order which laid down guidelines to protect identities of parties under the Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) and Rules.
The order, passed by Justice G S Patel of the high court on September 24 last year, mentioned a slew of guidelines related to conducting hearings, passing and uploading of orders, and reportage on cases of sexual harassment of women at workplaces, and made it clear that such cases can be either heard “in-camera” or in the judge’s chamber, and no reporting without the nod of the judge will be permitted. Any breach of these directions would amount to contempt of court, the court had observed.
The plea in the top court challenged the high court’s decision, terming the directions a “death blow” to the freedom of speech and expression.
“The high court has failed to take into consideration that any blanket ban or gag order in the form of an injunction restraining the broadcast of true and accurate facts will encroach upon the people’s right to know and violate their right to information, which is an integral part of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. This will have a devastating and detrimental effect on the society at large,” the plea, drafted by advocate Abha Singh on behalf of the victim, said.
Singh also pointed out that the high court order was passed suomoto in a suit filed by the victim seeking compensation for wrongful termination. “This gag order will serve as a tool for powerful men to continue to sexually harass women and thereafter suppress women’s voices on social media and in news media with the help of such gag orders,” the plea said.

::INTERNATIONAL::

French Prez sparks backlash by berating unvaccinated

French President Emmanuel Macron took Europe’s aggressive stance against the unvaccinated up a notch, saying he wants to “piss off” people who don’t get their Covid-19 shot.
“We will continue to do this, to the end. This is the strategy,” he said in an interview. He added that means “limiting as much as possible their access to activities in social life”.
The comments sparked an angry response from opposition politicians in France, and led to parliament suspending a debate on new virus restrictions. Some lawmakers are demanding that PM Jean Castex shows up to explain the remarks.
The verb used by Macron in the interview- “emmerder” in French - is informal slang commonly used to insult people. It can also mean to hassle, or annoy.
French politicians expressed dismay at Macron’s comments. Valerie Pecresse, presidential candidate for Conservative Party The Republicans, said on CNews she was “outraged by his comments” and that “insults are never a good solution”.
Meanwhile, France hit another record for new cases on Wednesday, AFP reported, citing comments by health minister Olivier Veran at the national assembly. New infections totalled about 335,000, Veran said, according to AFP, up from 271,686.

::ECONOMY::

SBI, ICICI, HDFC Bank continue to remain systemically important banks: RBI

The RBI said state-owned SBI, along with private sector lenders ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank continue to be Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs) or institutions which are 'too big to fail'.
SIBs are perceived as banks that are 'too big to fail (TBTF)'. This perception of TBTF creates an expectation of government support for these banks in times of distress. Due to this perception, these lenders enjoy certain advantages in the funding markets.
"SBI, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank continue to be identified as Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs), under the same bucketing structure as in the 2020 list of D-SIBs," the Reserve Bank said in a statement.
The additional Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) requirement for D-SIBs was phased-in from April 1, 2016 and became fully effective from April 1, 2019.
The additional CET1 requirement will be in addition to the capital conservation buffer.

::SCIENCE AND TECH::

Russia tests new hypersonic Tsirkon missiles

Russia test-fired around 10 new Tsirkon (Zircon) hypersonic cruise missiles from a frigate and two more from a submarine, Interfax news agency said on Friday citing northern fleet.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has lauded the weapon as part of a new generation of unrivalled arms systems.
Putin has called a missile test, conducted last week, "a big event in the country's life", adding that this was "a substantial step" in increasing Russia's defence capabilities.
Some Western experts have questioned how advanced Russia's new generation of weapons is, while recognising that the combination of speed, manoeuvrability and altitude of hypersonic missiles makes them difficult to track and intercept.
Putin announced an array of new hypersonic weapons in 2018 in one of his most bellicose speeches in years, saying they could hit almost any point in the world and evade a U.S.-built missile shield.

::SPORTS::

Liverpool-Arsenal League Cup semi-final postponed due to Covid-19

A coronavirus outbreak among Liverpool's players and staff led to the team's match against Arsenal in the English League Cup semifinals being postponed , adding to the backlog in English soccer caused by the fast-spreading omicron variant.
The English Football League, which runs the cup competition, approved a request from Liverpool for the game to be called off because of a slew of positive tests at the club that has led to the closure of its training ground.
Player availability had already been impacted because of injuries and absences for the African Cup of Nations, which is depriving Liverpool of Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and Naby Keita.
The first leg that was scheduled to take place at Arsenal will now be staged at Anfield on Jan. 13. The second leg will take place at Emirates Stadium on Jan. 20.