Current Affairs in Short: 26 October 2020

Veteran Gujarati Singer Mahesh Kanodia passes away

•  Mahesh Kanodia, veteran Gujarati film musician and former Lok Sabha MP passed away on October 25, 2020 after a prolonged illness. He was 83. He was a Lok Sabha MP from Patan constituency in Gujarat. 
•  Kanodia was reportedly suffering from paralysis. He was a member of the 10th, 11th, 12th and 14th Lok Sabha from Patan constituency of North Gujarat. 
•  His contribution to Gujarati Cinema spreads across almost four decades. He was known for singing in 32 different voices including female voices.

Pakistan to be in FATF grey list till February 2021

•  Pakistan will remain on the grey list of Financial Action Task Force (FATF), global terror financing watchdog, till February 2021. 
•  Pakistan will remain on the list, as it failed to fulfill six out of the 27 mandates to check terror funding. The decision was announced by the FATF President Marcus Pleyer.
•  The Financial Action Task Force has urged Pakistan to quickly complete its action plan by February 2021. Pakistan is yet to address serious deficiencies in the checking of terror funding. 
•  Pakistan was supposed to put in place the measures by the end of 2019, however, the deadline was extended in the wake of the COVID pandemic.

India to celebrate 145th birth anniversary of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel

•  India will celebrate the 145th Birth Anniversary of Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, also known as Iron Man of India, on October 31, 2020. 
•  The day is also earmarked as the Rashtriya Ekta Diwas across the nation. PM Narendra Modi is likely to visit Gujarat on October 31 to mark the special occasion. 
•  This year, however, there will be no ‘Run for Unity’ due to the Covid-19-related restrictions.

73rd Anniversary of Accession of J&K with Indian Union observed

•  The people of Jammu and Kashmir celebrated the 73rd Anniversary of Accession of J&K with the Indian Union on October 26, 2020. 
•  The day marks the Red Letter Day in Indian history when Maharaja Hari Singh, the then ruler of Jammu & Kashmir signed the instrument of accession with the Union of India, paving the way for the merger of the J&K princely state with India.
•  The day was observed as a public holiday this year for the first time since Independence. 

Bangladesh seeks USD 500 million support from World Bank for COVID 19 vaccine 

•  Bangladesh has requested financial support worth USD 500 million from the World Bank for COVID 19 vaccine in the country. 
•  The nation has sought the fund to utilize it for the procurement of the COVID-19 vaccine whenever it is ready along with its transportation and distribution in the nation. 
•  Bangladesh has also requested the World Bank to release USD 250 million on an urgent basis under COVID 19 recovery and response project to overcome COVID-19 impact on the country.