All domestic voice calls from Jio to be free
•All domestic voice calls from Jio to any other network will be completely free from January 1, 2021. The voice calls made through the internet had always been free on the Jio network.
•The off-net domestic voice calls will be free with interconnect usage charges (IUCs) for all domestic voice calls coming to an end from January 1, 2021.
•While initially, voice calls were free on the Jio network but later Jio was left with no option but to start charging its customers for off-net voice calls at a rate exactly equivalent to the applicable IUC charge.
•Jio had assured its users then that this charge will continue only till the time TRAI abolished IUC charges. The company said in a statement that today, Jio has delivered on that promise and made off-net voice calls free again.
Huge blast at Yemen's Aden Airport
•A large explosion had struck Yemen's Aden airport on December 30, 2020 shortly after a plane carrying the newly formed cabinet landed there. The blast led to the killing of around 25 people and wounded around 110.
•The Yemeni government ministers were reported to have escaped the attack unharmed. The Yemeni cabinet reshuffle was seen as a measure to narrow the rift between UAE-backed southern separatists and Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour's government.
•Hadi's government and the separatists are nominal allies in Yemen's years-long civil war, which has pitted the US-backed, Saudi-led military coalition against the Houthis, who control most of northern Yemen as well as the capital city Sanaa.
•As per Yemen's internationally recognized government, Iran-backed Houthi rebels fired four ballistic missiles at the airport. There has been no confirmation on the same.
New Covid-19 strain could have entered India prior to December: AIIMS Director
•With almost 20 cases of the new UK strain of Covid-19 being confirmed across India, All India Institute of Medical Sciences director Randeep Guleria said on December 30, 2020 that it is a possibility that the new mutation could have entered India before December, as the strain was reported in the United Kingdom in September.
•The AIIMS Director said that studies are being done in our country by the SARS-CoV-2 Genomic Consortia (INSACOG), which are looking at the samples even from November onwards.
•He stated that the number was not very high but we had travel going on from the UK even at that point of time. If you look at the data from Holland, they have said that there were persons who reported this strain even before it was reported by the UK as a global warning in December.
•Hence, he added that there is a possibility that this strain may have been even before December and it may have entered in India in November or the early part of December.
•Guleria confirmed that the new mutated coronavirus strain is 70 percent more infectious and is a matter of concern as spreads more rapidly as far as disease is concerned and extra caution needs to be taken.
•However, he assured that looking at India's COVID data for the last four to six weeks, there had been no spike in the number of cases and therefore it is unlikely that the new strain even if it had entered India earlier is causing a significant effect on India's total cases and hospitalization. He further assured that the vaccine will still be effective in producing antibodies against the new COVID strain.
Night curfew imposed in capital Delhi
•The Delhi Disaster Management Authority on December 31, 2020 imposed a night curfew in the capital city, banning midnight new year celebrations and the assembly of over five people at public places in view of the COVID-19 pandemic and the new virus strain from the UK.
•As per the order, no new year celebratory events or gatherings at public places will be allowed from 11 pm on December 31 to 6 am on January 1st and also from 11 pm on January 1 to 6 am on January 2nd.
•The order said that gatherings and public celebrations of the New Year pose a threat of becoming super spreader events and cause a setback to the gains made in the suppression of chain of COVID-19 transmission in Delhi.
•There will, however, be no restriction on the interstate and intrastate movement of people and goods during the curfew period. With this, Delhi joins Punjab, Maharashtra and Rajasthan in imposing night curfews.
Government grants 3-month extension to defence forces for emergency weapon acquisition
•The central government has granted a three-month extension to defence forces to buy emergency weapon systems under the emergency requirements to enhance the war preparedness of the three services.
•The centre had granted the three services emergency powers earlier this year to buy or lease any weapon system of their choice to be better prepared in case of an armed conflict. The order followed Chinese transgressions in eastern Ladakh.
•Now, the armed services have been given additional three months extension to buy more weapon systems of their choice including from both indigenous and foreign sources.
•The three services together have already finalised emergency acquisitions worth over USD 2 billion amid India's ongoing border conflict with China.
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