Current Affairs in Short: 26 March 2021

Passengers violating COVID-19 norms to be put on 'no-fly' list 

•Passengers violating COVID-19 protocol and norms will be put on 'no-fly' list, informed Union Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on March 26, 2021 in the wake of rise in COVID-19 cases in the country. 
•The Minister said, "We can win the fight against COVID-19 but the negligence of some people is creating problems. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has been instructed to crack the whip."
•He reiterated that some people are being careless and so the aviation ministry has decided to start putting people on no-fly list. He further added saying that if we compare air travel to travelling by buses or train, air travel is much safer. 

India has not banned export of COVID-19 vaacines

•As per sources, India has not banned the export of COVID-19 vaccines unlike many other countries and it will continue to supply the vaccines to partner countries in a phased manner keeping in view domestic requirements of a phased rollout.
•India had begun its vaccination programme on January 16 and within days, it had also started exporting vaccine supplies to countries in need.
•No other country has supplied as many doses of the COVID-19 vaccine in the world as India has so far. 
India has also begun sending supplies to the WHO/ Gavi-led COVAX facility. India remains committed to help the world with vaccines.
•However, given the country's current manufacturing capacity and requirements of national vaccination programmes, there may be a need to calibrate the supply schedules from time to time.

Virat Kohli becomes second batsman in history to reach 10,000 runs at number 3

•Indian captain Virat Kohli has become the second batsman in the history of ODI cricket to score 10,000 runs while batting at number three. He reached the feat during India's 2nd ODI against England.
•Kohli crossed the 10,000-run mark in his 192nd match (190th innings) at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium. 
•Former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting sits on top of the list with 12,662 runs from 330 innings. The third batsman in the list is former Sri Lankan batsman Kumar Sangakkara, who scored 9,747 runs from 238 innings. He is followed by South Africa's Jacques Kallis who scored 7774 runs in 204 matches.

Assam Assembly elections: Phase 1 polling for 47 seats tomorrow

•The first phase of polling in the Assam State Assembly Elections will take place from 7 am tomorrow, March 27, 2021. Under this phase, 47 constituencies will go to polls across 12 districts in the state. 
•As per the Election Commission, around 81,09,815 voters are eligible to cast their votes at 1,1537 polling stations under the first phase of Assam polls. The polling will be held between 7 am till 6 pm. 
•This phase will see BJP and Congress in close contests against each other. The seats going to polls tomorrow had witnessed election rallies by top BJP and Congress leaders including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP President Jagat Prakash Nadda, Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. 

Biden to run for re-election in 2024?

•US President Joe Biden during his first press conference after assuming office on March 25, 2021 said that he would like to run for re-election in 2024. 
•When asked if US Vice President Harris would remain as the vice-presidential candidate, Biden said that he would fully "expect that to be the case." 
•Biden added saying that Harris was doing "a great job." This comes as Biden has tapped Harris to lead the effort to combat the migration crisis brewing at the southern border.
•During the press briefing, Biden also announced a new vaccine goal of 200 million shots in arms in his first 100 days in office.