The Weekly Focus Edition 97
The neighbour's impact on India’s economy
As we know, the situation in Sri Lanka has been abysmal recently, Sri Lanka is a neighbour of India and has been a great ally until its involvement in the Chinese schemes. At the same time, Nepal has been under the shadows but is still in no good condition, due to its horrible economic reforms and government along with the Chinese Belt and Road initiative. Pakistan is also in a similar situation to Nepal and has had frustrating problems finding a suitable Prime Minister to help them regain their good reputation and internally strengthen the country. This comes as a massive hurdle for the Indian government, which in these trying times, is trying to emerge as a global superpower. Sri Lanka's crisis can cause huge problems with refugees flooding into the south bringing in massive responsibility for the Indian government. With Pakistan looking to get better with 2 middle eastern loans, the circumstances were not in their favour as after the departure of Prime Minister Imran Khan, the loans were cancelled. Now how does all this affect India? India will have to help both Sri Lanka and Nepal and has already issued a credit link to Sri Lanka, now of course this is amazing aid and commendable but it does set India further back. Additionally, with refugee problems and instability in the region, India’s trade can loosen and affect it in more dire ways.
Taliban rule in Afghanistan
As the world watched the situation in Ukraine, most of us have forgotten about the situation that remains in Afghanistan. Although the Taliban promised they would be different when they claimed power in Afghanistan, the time has shown those were all lies. Yesterday the Taliban imposed a mandatory restriction on all women, forcing them to wear a head to toe burkha at all times when in public. Last month the Taliban banned schooling for girls after 6th grade, which is another indication of sexist and terrible practices continuing in Afghanistan, which was something the Taliban had once again promised they would discontinue. The Taliban now faces a real military threat from armed groups and Pakistan themselves, who although haven’t claimed responsibility but are assumed to have conducted air raids in Afghanistan territory. International reactions have been subdued to do with the world’s attention being elsewhere at the moment, but this is a critical issue and should be reprimanded globally.
Location of the asteroid that caused Dinosaur extinction
The free-roaming dinosaurs millions of years ago were wiped out by an asteroid colliding with Earth. The location of the asteroid effect has now been determined by researchers, which led to the mass extinction of dinosaurs. The dinosaur-killing asteroid was between 10.6 and 80.9 kilometres in diameter and touched Earth more than 65 million years ago. The collision was a gift to humanity as it colonized the entire planet and made it useful to humanity's rise.
Other News
Emmanuel Macron wins re-election in France, to be president for another term.
An iconic Five-Star hotel in Havana explodes due to a gas leak, 22 people have been killed so far.
As the Sri Lankan crisis continues, another state of emergency has been declared after weeks of protests and shortages of daily necessities.
The Russian foreign ministry released a statement assuring the world it will not use nuclear weapons in Ukraine.
North Korea fires an unidentified projectile into the sea, which could be a nuclear test
Sports News
LSG top the IPL table after over 50 games, but Mumbai Indians are still languishing at the bottom despite 2 consecutive wins.
The Asian games 2022 have been postponed after a Covid-19 outbreak in China
Charles LeClerc takes pole in the F1 qualification, with Carlos Sainz starting second and Max Verstappen starting third
Manchester City lose to Real Madrid 6-5 on aggregate in the Champions League Semi-Finals, to face Liverpool in the final
Fact or Fiction
1) There is a difference between a lawyer and an attorney.
2) Lawyering cannot trace its origin way back.
3) The World’s Biggest Truth competition banned lawyers from participating.
4) To become a lawyer, you need seven more years of study after high school.
5) Recent 2021 data suggested that Japan has the highest-paid lawyers.
6) The United States celebrates May 1 as Law Day.
Some Weird Laws:
7) In Tennessee, children need a license to play games on Sundays!
8) In Utah, birds have right of way on the public highways.
9) In Arizona, soap stealers are forced to use the soap till it is gone.
10) In Texas, you need to have a doctor’s prescription to have a bath!
Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness
Sam Raimi
12+
4.5 stars
A brilliant film starring Benedict Cumberbatch, the second Doctor Strange movie is a blockbuster already. The Marvel Cinematic Universe has teased the multiverse so much in the last few films, especially Spider-Man Far From Home, but this is the first time that we actually explore it and understand it. The movie begins with Stephen Strange dreaming of the multiverse; about him and a girl, running from a monster to a glowing book, called the ‘Book of Vishanti’. The monster is trying to steal the girl's power and Doctor Strange is trying to stop that from happening. However, he realises that the only way to defeat the monster is by taking the girl's powers. With a start, he wakes up. He gets dressed and leaves for the wedding of his ex-girlfriend, Christine Palmer. However, while the wedding is on, a monster is trying to capture and kill a teenage girl. Strange fit the pieces together and realises that she is the girl he saw in his dream. Her name, she reveals to him later, is America Chavez and she has the ability to travel the multiverse.
Watch the movie to find out the rest of this incredible journey through the multiverse and back.
P.S: don’t miss the post-credits scenes!
Written by Vivaan Dharamshi
Edited by Nirvaan Zaveri
Article 1 by Arhaan Zaveri
Article 3 by Krishnav Bubna
Fact or Fiction by Nikunj Gupta
Review by Saveer Solanki
Fact or Fiction Answers:
1) Fact
2) Fiction (It actually can trace its way back, all the way to the days of the Greek and Roman civilizations)
3) Fiction (It was actually the World’s Biggest Liar Competition).
4) Fact
5) Fact
6) Fact
7) Fact
8) Fact
9) Fact
10) Fiction (The correct state is Colorado, not Texas).