08th January 2020 Current affairs

1. Patiala House Court issued a death warrant against four convicts of the Nirbhaya case on January 7, 2020. The four convicts Akshay, Mukesh, Vinay and Pawan will be hanged on January 22, 2020 at 7 am. 

2. The US-based political commentator and comedian Hassan Minhaj was ranked first in Forbes India’s list of 20 people to watch in the 2020s. Kanhaiya Kumar, Prashant Kishor, and Mahua Moitra have also found a place in the list. Environmental Activist Greta Thunberg was ranked 15th on the list. 

3. The Union Ministry of External Affairs has issued a travel advisory, advising Indian nationals to avoid all non-essential travel to Iraq until further notification. The Indians living in Iraq have also been advised to stay alert and avoid travel within the nation.  

4. Indian weightlifter Sarbjeet Kaur has been banned from the sport for four years after being found guilty of a doping violation. The weightlifter had won the 71kg event at the women’s national weightlifting championships in February 2019. 

5. Iran launched over a dozen surface-to-surface ballistic missiles at the US troops stationed at air bases in Iraq. This was announced by the Pentagon on January 7, 2020. Iran’s military response comes in retaliation to the slaying of its top General Qassem Soleimani. 

6. Vikram Sarabhai Children Innovation Center (VSCIC) will be set up soon in Gujarat. The centre will work towards identifying children with ideas and then nurture and support them.  

7. The Ukrainian Boeing-737-800 plane crashed at the Imam Khomeini Airport in Tehran on January 08, 2020. It was carrying 167 passengers and 9 crew members. The series of Boeing have faced several accidents and crashes in the past. 

8. The UP government on January 07, 2020 sanctioned Rs 234 crore for the establishment of Shaheed Ashfaqullah Khan Zoological Garden. This zoo will be established in Gorakhpur. The decision was taken in a cabinet meeting held in the leadership of CM Yogi Adityanath. 

9. Pune hosted the 5th Asia Pacific Drosophila Research Conference. India is hosting this conference for the first time. It is being organized by the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Pune. The purpose of this biennial program is to advance dialogue with the remaining global researchers of Drosophila researchers in the Asia-Pacific region. 

10. India’s first turtle rehabilitation center will be inaugurated in Bhagalpur Forest Division, Bihar in January 2020. This rehabilitation center is the first of its kind where all arrangements are being made for rehabilitation of freshwater turtles.