Top 5 Current Affairs: 9 May 2019

Deadline for finalisation of Assam NRC will not be extended: Supreme Cour

The Supreme Court has ruled that it would not be extending the deadline for the finalisation of the Assam National Register of Citizens (NRC). The final NRC list is expected to be released by July 31. The ruling came after Assam NRC coordinator informed the apex court bench that claimants, who have objected to inclusion or exclusion of certain individuals, have failed to appear before panels dealing with such cases.

Trump imposes harsher sanctions on Iran’s iron, steel, copper and aluminium industry

US President Donald Trump on May 8, 2019 imposed stricter sanctions on Iran’s iron, copper, steel and aluminium industry. The decision aims to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear weapon and intercontinental ballistic missiles. The announcement comes a year after Trump pulled the US out of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal, calling it one-sided.
Chris Gayle named West Indies Vice-Captain for last World Cup

Chris Gayle, known as one of the world’s most destructive batsman, has been named as the Vice-Captain for West Indies World Cup team. The veteran batsman has captained the team before in 90 matches from 2007 to 2010. The World Cup tournament would be Gayle’s last ODI tournament, as he announced his retirement from the format in February 2019.

Facebook chooses London as base for WhatsApp Pay

Facebook has chosen London as the centre for the global launch of the digital payments service, WhatsApp Pay. Among the total user base of WhatsApp, around 300 million users are in India itself. The company is actively working on to launch its digital payments service in India.

Sand and Sustainability: UNEP Report on Sand Mining

The United Nations Environment Programme recently released a report titled ‘Sand and sustainability: Finding new solutions for environmental governance of global sand resources’ on sand mining and its consumption. The report indicates that global demand for sand and gravel is at 40 to 50 billion tonnes per year. It also highlighted the issues caused by illegal sand mining from rivers such as flooding, rising level of pollution, lowering of water aquifers and worse drought occurrences.

Download our Current Affairs& GK app from Play Store/For Latest Current Affairs & GK, Click here