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- Andy Burnham Becomes UK PM | Bengali Mandatory In West Bengal Govt Offices
Today’s important current affairs, which are essential for students preparing for government jobs…
INTERNATIONAL
1. Andy Burnham became the Prime Minister of Britain
- On 20 July, Labour Party leader Andy Burnham assumed office as Britain’s 59th PM.
- Burnham took charge after meeting with King Charles III.
- Burnham has become Britain’s 7th Prime Minister in the last 10 years.
- Burnham has replaced former PM Keir Starmer. Burnham has also previously served as Mayor of Manchester.
- He is called King of the North for advocating for regional rights of people in Northern England, especially Greater Manchester.
Andy Burnham has been the Mayor of Greater Manchester and is known for regional development and public transport reforms.
SPORTS
2. Spain wins FIFA World Cup 2026
- On 20 July, Spain won the Football World Cup title after 16 years.
- The team defeated 2022 champion Argentina 1-0 in the final played at New Jersey Stadium in New York.
- Spain has won the FIFA World Cup for the second time after 2010.
- France’s Kylian Mbappe scored the most goals in the 2026 Football World Cup.
- Kylian claimed the Golden Boot with 10 goals and 4 assists throughout the tournament.
- Spain’s coach Luis de la Fuente became the oldest coach to win the World Cup.
- Spain’s Rodri was chosen as the best player of the tournament.
- France’s Kylian Mbappe also secured his place in the major awards.
- Argentina’s player Enzo Fernndez was shown a red card during the final.
- The FIFA tournament was jointly hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada from 11 June.
- For the first time, the FIFA World Cup was jointly hosted by three countries: the United States, Mexico and Canada.
- For the first time, 48 teams participated in the FIFA World Cup and a total of 104 matches were played.
- For the first time, FIFA’s total prize money was set at 871 million US dollars (record) which is approximately ₹8,400 crores.
- The champion team received a prize money of approximately ₹490 crores ($51 million), while the runner-up received approximately ₹317 crores ($33 million).
3. Rohit Sharma becomes the first Indian to score the most runs at Lord’s
- On 20 July, Rohit Sharma played an innings of 138 runs at Lord’s.
- Rohit played an innings of 138 runs off 110 balls. He became the first Indian to score an ODI century at the Lord’s ground.
- Rohit surpassed Sourav Ganguly’s score of 90 runs.
- Rohit became the first Indian batsman to score an ODI century at the Lord’s ground.
- Rohit also created the record of being the oldest Indian player to score an ODI century.
- Rohit shared a century partnership with Virat Kohli for the second wicket.
- Both of them shared a partnership of 100 or more runs for the 21st time in ODI cricket.
NATIONAL
4. India-Sri Lanka DTAA amended
- On 19 July, the Government of India implemented amendments to the India-Sri Lanka Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA).
- This notification was issued on 16 July and will strengthen the tax partnership between India and Sri Lanka.
- This change has been made to prevent treaty shopping. After this rule, DTAA benefits will not be available in any transaction or arrangement.
- After this rule, if any person or company engages in shopping to save taxes, they will not get the benefit of the treaty.
- Treaty shopping is a method in which people try to reduce taxes by routing through a third country.
- This rule will be implemented in India from the financial year 2027-28 (FY28) and this amendment is to promote economic cooperation.
- The amendment in DTAA has been made based on OECD/G20’s BEPS (Base Erosion and Profit Shifting) standards.
- There was already a Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) between India and Sri Lanka.
- The old treaty has been updated to defeat tax evasion and artificial structures worldwide.
DEATH
5. Bengali language made mandatory in government work in West Bengal
- On 20 July, West Bengal CM Suvendu Adhikari made Bengali language compulsory in all government work in the state.
- Now from 1 September, Bangla language will be mandatory in all government work and communication-related work of the state government.
- The report of Justice Sushant Chatterjee Commission constituted by the government will also be made public.
- The report will present complete information to the public about the commission’s recommendations and which of those suggestions have been implemented.
- Bengali will be mandatory in all government work, applications, forms, certificates and portals. However, correspondence with the central government in Hindi language will continue.
- The department related to Official Language comes under the Ministry of Home Affairs.
- It will be operated by the bilingual software ‘Anuvad Sarathi’ of the Indian Languages section, which will be able to translate all work as per requirement.
- This step has been taken to promote the Bengali language in administrative work in West Bengal and to strengthen the linguistic and cultural identity of the state.
- Home Minister Amit Shah had sent a letter written in Bengali to CM Suvendu for the preservation, promotion, development and to encourage the study of the Bengali language, after which this announcement has been made.
6. Manipuri film director Oken Amakcham passes away
- On 19 July, renowned Manipuri film director and actor Oken Amakcham passed away. He was 64 years old.
- Oken directed his first film Konthang in 1992, which was included in the Indian Film Festival of India.
- In 1994, Oken’s film Mayope Gi Macha received the National Award for Best Manipuri Feature Film at the 42nd edition.
- Oken was also a member of the 58th National Film Awards jury. Along with this, he was also the Vice President of Film Forum Manipur.
- Oken received recognition in 2002 for directing Lammei, which is considered the first commercially exhibited digital film of Manipuri cinema.
Oken was a music director as well as an actor.
Today’s History
- In 1883, India’s first public theatre was started in Kolkata.
- In 2007, Pratibha Devisingh Patil was elected as the 12th President of India. With this, she became the first woman of India to hold the highest constitutional post of the country.
- In 2011, the Space Shuttle Program of American space agency NASA concluded. With the landing of Space Shuttle ‘Atlantis’, this 30-year-old shuttle mission was completed.
