Current Affairs in Short: 29 September 2021

Two new IPL teams to be announced on October 25

•The Governing Council of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on September 28, 2021, confirmed that two new IPL teams will be announced on October 25, 2021, a day after the India-Pakistan T20 World Cup match.

•BCCI issued a statement that the IPL Media Rights tender for 2023-27 will be released immediately after the appointment of two new IPL teams which is scheduled to be announced on October 25.

•BCCI earlier had extended the date of purchasing the Invitation to Tender (ITT) for the right to own and operate one of two proposed new IPL teams documents till October 10 from the initial October 5.

•Interested parties will receive ITT on paying the non-refundable tender fee of Rs 10,00,000 plus any applicable GST. Interested parties can email at ittipl2021@bcci.tv to seek more information to purchase the ITT.

Afghanistan envoy withdraws from UNGA

•Afghanistan’s ambassador to the United Nations Ghulam Isaczai had to pull out of delivering an address at the UN General Assembly (UNGA) debate as his name was removed from the list of speakers.

•On September 20, Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi wrote a letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres saying that President Ghani was “ousted” and that countries across the world “no longer recognize him as president”. Therefore, Isaczai no longer represents Afghanistan at the UN.

•Taliban group’s Doha-based spokesman Suhail Shaheen has been nominated as Afghanistan’s UN ambassador by Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

•The UN had refused to recognize its government during the Taliban’s rule between 1996 and 2001. Instead, Afghanistan’s seat in the UN was given to the previous government of President Burhanuddin Rabbani.

India, US sign two MoUs for cooperation in Health and Biomedical Sciences

•Two Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) were signed during the closing session of the two-day 4^th Indo-US Health Dialogue being hosted in India. Health and Family Welfare Minister Mansukh Mandaviya addressed the closing session.

•Various ongoing collaborations in the health sector between India and the US were deliberated during the 4^th Indo-US Health Dialogue. Mandaviya said India and the US are global partners and they need to work in collaboration for reforming the global health architecture.

•The two MoUs each have been signed for cooperation in Health and Biomedical Sciences and cooperation with International Centre for Excellence in Research (ICER).

MSD Pharmaceuticals launches India’s first gender-neutral HPV vaccine

•MSD Pharmaceuticals on September 29, 2021, announced the launch of India’s first gender-neutral Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine GARDASIL-9. The only US Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) approved vaccine GARDASIL-9 will help reduce HPV-related disease burden in India.

•Launched first in the US in 2015, GARDASIL-9 is a 9-valent HPV vaccine that will also help in reducing cancers caused by the HPV types contained in the vaccine, among girls and women aged 9 to 26 years and boys aged 9 to 15 years.

•GARDASIL-9 has been found effective in reducing the risk of different types of cancers in women namely cervical, vulvar, anal, vaginal. The vaccine has been found effective in men as well for the prevention of anal intraepithelial neoplasia, genital warts, and cancer, and precancerous or dysplastic lesions.

Bahrain launches fastest global sea-to-air logistics hub in the region

•The Kingdom of Bahrain on September 29, 2021, launched the fastest regional multi-modal logistics hub known as ‘Bahrain Global Sea-to-Air Hub’ in the region with only a 2-hour turnaround time for all containers. Customers can now receive the products in half the time and at 40 per cent of the cost.

•The Hub establishes the most efficient multi-modal sea-to-air transshipment hub in the region by capitalizing both on its proximity to regional target markets and Bahrain’s strategic position midway between European and Asian markets as well.

•The Hub incorporates optimized logistics, streamlined clearance procedures, and full digitization for achieving an end-to-end lead time of just under two hours for goods transiting from Bahrain International Airport to Khalifa bin Salman port, and vice versa.

•The Hub is expected to register a 50 per cent reduction in average lead time compared to pure sea freight and a 40 per cent reduction in the cost compared to pure air freight. The Hub is expected to further the growth of the Bahrain logistics sector.