Latest News: NASA's Perseverance lands on Mars, China admits casualties in Galwan valley

'I'm Safe On Mars': NASA's Perseverance Lands On Red Planet After '7 Minutes Of Terror'

NASA’s perseverance on February 18 made a historic touchdown on Mars’ surface at 3:55 p.m. EST (12:55 p.m. PST). The explorer landed safely following ‘7 minutes of terror’ as dubbed by NASA, following which, JPL made an official announcement in its mission control at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. NASA’s 2,263-pound (1,026-kilogram) robotic vehicle descended on the western edge of Isidis. The explorer, which hit the landing site, Jezero Crater, will begin its mission to search signs of ancient microbial life and collect samples of rock and regolith, broken rock and soil, for its separate return mission to Earth. Perseverance will explore Jezero’s ancient lakebed and river delta to characterize the region’s geology and past climate, and establish if the planet was habitable billions of years ago. 

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China Admits Casualties In Galwan Valley Clash; Details Of 4 PLA Soldiers Killed Disclosed

China on Friday admitted for the first time that the People's Liberation Army (PLA) lost four of its soldiers in the Galwan Valley clash with India last year near the LAC. According to a report by state-controlled People's Daily, "Four Chinese soldiers, who were sacrificed in last June's border conflict, were posthumously awarded honorary titles and first-class merit citations, Central Military Commission announced Friday. A colonel, who led them and seriously injured, was conferred with an honorary title."

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5,000 New Coronavirus Cases Recorded In Maharashtra, Govt Mulls Fresh Lockdown Over Spike

Mumbai, on February 18, recorded 736 fresh Covid-19 cases, taking the total for this week to 5,000 new cases that is the highest in the past 75 days. While Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray had warned people of a possible lockdown in case the norms are not followed. Restrictions have been placed in two districts — Amravati and Yavatmal with weekend lockdowns instituted, and next on the list are Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur according to Mayor Kishori Pednekar, who warned of a possible lockdown in the city as it continues recording a high number of cases.

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Ambitious US Citizenship Act Of 2021 Introduced In Congress 

A bicameral US Citizenship Act of 2021 proposing a pathway to citizenship to 11 million undocumented workers, elimination of per country quota for employment-based green cards and work authorisation for dependents of H-1B foreign workers, was introduced in the Congress.

The bill, if passed by both the chambers of the Congress – House of Representatives and the Senate and signed into law by President Joe Biden would bring citizenship to millions of foreign nationals, including undocumented and those who came to the country legally.

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Farmers' Rail Roko Andolan Had 'negligible' Impact On Train Services, Says Railways

The four-hour nationwide 'rail roko' agitation called by farmer groups on Thursday had "negligible" or "minimal" impact on train services, the Indian Railways said. The blockade was held across the country from 12 pm to 4 pm and no untoward incident was reported due to the protest, though some trains were stopped by officials at stations as a precautionary measure. 

The Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella body of farmer unions that is spearheading the protest, had announced the rail blockade, to intensify its agitation against the Centre's new farm laws. 

"The rail roko agitation passed off without any untoward incident. There was negligible or minimal impact on the running of the trains across the country. Train movement in all the zones is normal now," a Railways spokesperson said.

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