Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 24 February 2022

SSC CGL Current Affairs

Current Affairs for SSC CGL Exams - 24 February 2022

::NATIONAL::

Orissa HC orders govt to hold meeting with Dhinkia villagers on their concerns

The Orissa high court on Wednesday ordered that a meeting be convened by the Jagatsinghpur district administration next month to enable villagers of Dhinkia, who clashed with the police on January 14 over a steel project, can air their grievances.
The two-judge bench led by chief justice S Murlidhar earlier sent a team of five lawyers to the village, the proposed site of 13.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) integrated steel project of JSW Steel in Jagatsinghpur district, on February 19 and file a report on the prevailing ground situation following the January 14 clash.
But a second group clash took place during the team’s visit. The bench on Wednesday ordered that a meeting of the residents of Dhinkia gram panchayat would be held in the village in the presence of the five lawyers and the entire proceeding video-recorded.
On February 19, a clash broke out between a group of villagers supporting the proposed JSW’s steel plant and those opposing when the team of lawyers went to the village. The supporters of the proposed JSW project reportedly thrashed PradeepSatpathy, a priest at a local temple who was opposing the proposed steel project.
The high court order came amid the environment ministry’s Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) recommending grant of environmental clearance to the JSW steel project with 96 conditions that include providing access to the fisherman for fishing and taking all other measures essential for their sustainable livelihood.
The EAC also recommended that all plant roads will have to be paved and industrial vacuum cleaners used to clean the roads regularly. The recommendation of the environmental clearance came during the meeting of EAC on Feb 10-11. The environmental clearance will be formally granted after the environment ministry’s approval.

::INTERNATIONAL::

Biden announces sanctions on company building Russia's Nord Stream 2 pipeline

President Joe Biden said the United States would impose sanctions on the company in charge of building Russia's Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, expanding penalties on Moscow after it recognized two breakaway regions in eastern Ukraine.
The sanctions, which target the Nord Stream 2 AG company and its corporate officers, add to pressure on the Baltic Sea project that was designed to double the gas flow capacity from Russia to Germany.
The White House said the sanctions will not affect Gerhard Schroeder, a former German chancellor and a close friend of Putin's who has headed the shareholders committee of Nord Stream since 2005.
Europe's most divisive energy project, Nord Stream 2 has not begun operations pending certification by Germany and the European Union.
Germany halted the pipeline, worth $11 billion, citing Russia's actions toward Ukraine. The United States and the EU worry the pipeline will increase Europe's dependence on Russian energy supplies and deny transit fees to Ukraine, host to another Russian gas pipeline.

::ECONOMY::

Employer has to pay damages for delay in payment of EPF contribution: SC

An employer is under an obligation to pay the damages for delay in payment of the contribution of Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) of an employee, the Supreme Court said.
A bench of Justices Ajay Rastogi and Abhay S Oka said Employees Provident Fund & Miscellaneous Provisions Act is legislation for providing social security to the employees working in any establishment and engaging 20 or more persons.
The top court said that the Act casts an obligation upon the employer to make the compulsory deduction for provident fund and to deposit in the workers' account in the EPF office.
We are of the considered view that any default or delay in the payment of EPF contribution by the employer under the Act is a sine qua non for the imposition of levy of damages under Section 14B of the Act 1952 and mensrea or actusreus is not an essential element for imposing penalty/damages for breach of civil obligations/liabilities, the bench said.

::SCIENCE AND TECH::

Space junk set to crash into Moon not from China, says foreign ministry

China denied responsibility for a rocket set to slam into the Moon, after experts said the piece of space junk likely came from Beijing's lunar exploration programme.
Astronomers initially thought the wayward object was a chunk of a SpaceX rocket that blasted off seven years ago and was abandoned in space after completing its mission.
But it is now believed to be the booster for the Chang'e 5-T1, launched in 2014 as part of the Chinese space agency's lunar exploration programme.
The rocket is expected to crash into the far side of the moon on March 4.
But China's foreign ministry rejected the claim Monday, saying the booster in question had "safely entered the Earth's atmosphere and was completely incinerated".
Beijing "conscientiously upholds the long-term sustainability of activities in outer space", spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a regular press briefing.
China has set its sights on becoming a space superpower and took a landmark step last year with the launch of the longest crewed mission to its new space station.

::SPORTS::

Asian Games main target this year: Mirabai Chanu

Within a month of winning India’s only Olympic silver in weightlifting—and the second medal after KarnamMallewari’s bronze in 2000 —MirabaiChanu was training at Patiala’s National Institute of Sport. But having skipped last November’s world championships, it is only on Friday, at the Singapore Weightlifting International, seven months after the Olympics that she will return to competition.
The Singapore event is also a qualifier for the Commonwealth Games (July 28-August 8) where India lack a strong competitor in the 55kg category. So for now, Chanu has been asked to move up from 49kg where India also have a Games’ berth.