The Weekly Focus Edition 44
Bengal Elections update:
West Bengal is a crucial state with a neck to neck battle for power between The BJP or Bhartiya Janata Party which is the party of Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, and TMC or Trinamool Congress the party which currently holds power backing Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. West Bengal has been governed by the TMC and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee for a decade now. Up till now three out of eight phases are complete, ninety one constituencies have cast their votes. Tomorrow, the tenth of April twenty-twenty one will be the date for the fourth phase polling. In the fourth phase, forty-four seats will be contested for.
In the course of campaigning and rallying several heated battles in speeches of leaders have occurred. Many of these vocal wars have been Mamata Banerjee against Amit Shah. Furthermore, booths are being captured, EVM’s (Electronic Voting Machines) are being stolen and leaders of parties are issuing complaints to the Election Commission and the State Police. Polling parties have already gathered at Alipore ahead of the anticipated fourth phase voting tomorrow. Hopefully, everything goes smoothly, fairly and ethically, and may the best candidate win.
By Arhaan Zaveri
SpaceX new launch
The 60 Starlink internet satellites SpaceX has launched were in the lower orbit of the Earth. The new batch of satellites was carried by the Falcon 9. It took off from the Space Launch Complex- 40 at the Space Force Station in Florida on 7th April. The company said, “This was the seventh launch and landing of this Falcon 9 first stage booster, which previously launched Nasa astronauts Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station, ANASIS-II, CRS-21, Transporter-1, and two Starlink missions.” The Falcon 9’s first landing was on the company’s ‘Of Course I Still Love You’ drone a few minutes after take-off. A total of 300 satellites have been launched this year. They launched most of these satellites in March.
By Krishnav Bubna
Football News!
The UEFA Champions League is back! Till now, four matches have been played of the quarter-finals and each yielded surprises to us. FC Bayern played PSG and star-performer Kyllian Mbappe inspired the French side to a 3-2 victory. He scored a brace and captain Marquinhos scored 1 goal to beat Bayern’s goals from Choupo-Moting and Thomas Muller. The second leg is going to be played in a week and we are all excited for the final outcome. Manchester City took a comfortable 2-1 lead against BVB Dortmund, Erling Haaland unable to score a goal, and Chelsea too lead 2-0 against Porto FC. Real Madrid had played Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool and the Whites emerged victorious after 2 goals from Vinicius Jr. and 1 from Marco Asensio. Mohammed Salah was the only scorer from the Reds’ side. In other news, the second El Clasico of the season is going to be played tonight and the two sides (Real Madrid and FC Barcelona) are head to head for second and maybe first place on the La Liga points table. In the Premier League, Manchester City are comfortable in 1st place, 14 points ahead of 2nd place Manchester United.
Other News
UK Prince Phillip, wife of the queen of England dies aged 99 due to old age.
Calls to boycott the 2022 Winter Olympics grew after reports of the mistreatment of minorities in China.
The Myanmar Coup limited the internet, arrested celebrities on its latest crackdown towards the protests.
Russian President Vladimir Putin passed a law that allows him to keep power till 2036
LG officially shuts down its mobile business across the world.
A giant monitor lizard causes chaos in a supermarket in Thailand.
Tech News
WhatsApp has released stickers for the vaccine to share the experience.
A study says that the value of the Samsung Galaxy S21 has decreased since January.
The fake Netflix app spread malware through WhatsApp.
Apple iPad and MacBook production decreased due to shortage of supply.
RCB beat MI by 2 wickets in a last-ball thriller to start the IPL
Jason Beherndorff has been named Josh Hazelwood’s replacement.
Sachin Tendulkar has been discharged from the hospital and will be home isolated.
Pakistan created history by beating South Africa in the ODI series.
Seaspiracy
★★★★ (4.5 stars)
Available on: Netflix
Age Rating*: 15+
Directed by and starring: Ali Tabrizi
Initially released on 24th March 2021, this documentary quickly caught the eyes of several viewers. It speaks about the environmental impact of the commercial fishing industries, and through its course reveals some rather shocking revelations. Recently, several talk has been going on about the documentary spreading ‘misinformation’. Whether true or not, this is an eye-opener that one must watch. With an overwhelming amount of statistics and data, it’s not easy to get every little bit of information correct, so I suggest you watch this documentary and then research and decide for yourself. Even if some data is not completely accurate, it does not take away the heart-wrenching reality we face, and that action needs to be taken to save our planet. This documentary will get you thinking, wondering, and perhaps even changing your lifestyle. Do watch it.
*This documentary can be seen by slightly younger viewers as well although please beware there are several gory scenes with lots of bloodshed, killing and violence. If you are sensitive to such things, we suggest you do not watch this.
On 4th April 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was signed by various countries in Washington, D.C.
On 5th April 1879, the War of the Pacific was initiated after Chile declared war on Bolivia and Peru
On 6th April 2016, a baby became the first one to have DNA of 3 parents due to mitochondrial transfer
On 7th April 1948, the UN founded the World Health Organisation (WHO)
On 8th April 1913, China’s first parliament was opened
On 9th April 2003, Baghdad fell to the US forces ending the Iraq invasion
On 10th April 1972, 72 countries including the US and the USSR agreed to ban biological weapons
Hot water will turn into ice faster than cold water.
Edited by Nirvaan Zaveri
Written By Vivaan Dharamshi