College students collect for the launch of ISRO’s TV-D1 check flight of Mission Gaganyaan, at Satish Dhawan House Station, in Sriharikota. The liftoff of the check automobile with crew safety-related payloads related to the human house flight mission passed off after it was initially delayed owing to a glitch. PTI
Israel, Israel and Israel. We have now accomplished two weeks of the lethal Israel-Hamas struggle – the toll has climbed to greater than 4,000 individuals on either side – and nobody is aware of when it’s going to finish. Nonetheless, it’s not the one information that bought us all labored up this week.
Away from the glare of the struggle, large and important occasions passed off in India that caught our consideration. The Indian House Analysis Organisation (ISRO) performed its first check flight for the upcoming Gaganyaan mission, there was additionally the same-sex marriage verdict delivered by the Supreme Courtroom, which left many LGBTQ+ members and allies disillusioned.
Drama additionally caught up with Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra within the money for question scandal after a enterprise tycoon alleged in an affidavit that she had granted him entry to her Parliamentary login and allowed him to ask questions in lieu of shopping for her costly luxurious objects and arranging logistics for her travels.
As we sit again over the weekend, and attempt to unwind, right here’s a deep dive into the political drama embroiling Mahua Moitra, the Indians concerned within the Israel struggle and the same-sex marriage verdict that denies marriage equality in India.
1. ISRO has had many successes within the latest previous; it efficiently landed Chandrayaan-3 on the Moon’s South Pole, turning into solely to do and the fourth to land on the lunar floor. On Saturday (21 October), they attained success after conducting a check with the purpose of finally launch an Indian astronaut into house, by the Gaganyaan mission.
The Flight Test Vehicle Abort Mission-1 (TV-D1) is to display the efficiency of the Crew Escape System of the Gaganyaan undertaking. Nonetheless, it was ‘put on hold’ 5 seconds from its scheduled launch owing to an ignition downside. However ISRO ‘identified and corrected’ the problem and had a profitable take-off.
2. India isn’t simply making strides within the house sector. We’re on the quick observe in the case of rail journey too. On Friday (20 October), Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the 17-km precedence part of the Delhi-Meerut Fast Rail Transport System (RRTS). For these questioning what’s the RRTS and the way is it any completely different from the Metro or present railway methods, now we have you coated here.
With this new community, rail journey is anticipated to be quicker – journey time between Sahibabad and Duhai Depot shall be 12 minutes, which might normally take round 30-35 minutes by street.
3. Nonetheless, there was some disappointment within the nation when the Supreme Courtroom refused to grant legal recognition to same-sex marriages. Listening to a clutch of petitions, the five-judge Bench – comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justices S Ravindra Bhat, Hima Kohli and PS Narasimha, and SK Kaul – mentioned it’s past the courtroom’s scope and needs to be determined by Parliament, however emphasised that queer relationships mustn’t face discrimination by the state.
There was a silver lining within the judgment, although. The courtroom in its verdict mentioned that state governments might draft amendments to the Particular Marriage Act to permit for unions between same-sex {couples} within the absence of a central legislation.
4. This week additionally noticed TMC’s Mahua Moitra within the highlight. A political storm has erupted after BJP MP Nishikant Dubey accused the TMC chief of “asking questions in Parliament in exchange for cash and gifts” from a businessman. Moitra denied the allegations, terming them as “defamatory, false, baseless and not supported by even a shred of evidence”.
Nonetheless, the scandal took a flip for the worst when Darshan Hiranandani, CEO of the true property and infrastructure firm Hiranandani Group, claimed in an affidavit that the firebrand MP had shared her Lok Sabha login credentials with him in an effort to enable him to ask questions in lieu of pricy items. He additional alleged that she obtained assist from others on this effort, together with journalists, Opposition leaders and former Adani Group staff, who fed her unverified info. Learn all about his explosive claims (right here) and the way the TMC MP responded.
5. The Israel-Hamas struggle took a flip for the worst within the week when a bomb exploded over a hospital in Gaza, killing over 500 individuals, although US intelligence pegs the toll at 100-300. Because the state of affairs deteriorates in Gaza, India has been retaining a detailed eye on struggle, repatriating over 1,000 residents from Israel. However what concerning the Indians in Gaza? Our explainer tells us the worsening state of affairs within the Strip and of the presence of Indians there.
6. Winter is right here and which means one factor: deteriorating air air pollution. Whereas the northern a part of the nation is normally the sufferer of poor air high quality, it was Mumbai, the monetary capital, which suffered from unhealthy air situations. However why is Most Metropolis shrouded in smog? We provide the solutions here.
In case you like how we break down the massive headlines and provide the inside observe, here’s the place you may learn up on our different explainers.