World neglected tropical diseases day

World neglected tropical diseases day

January 30, 2020 is the first-ever World Neglected Tropical Diseases Day (World NTD Day), a day when we celebrate the achievements made towards control of the world’s NTDs, yet recognize the daunting challenges we face in the control and elimination of these conditions.

Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) identifies 20 major conditions as NTD

 This inaugural event was announced at the Reaching the Last Mile Forum held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) in November 2019.

 Motto:“#BeatNTDs: For good. For all”.

New Zealand spinner Todd Astle announced first-class retirement

 New Zealand spinner Todd Astle announced first-class retirement

New Zealand leg-spinner Todd Astle has announced his retirement from first-class cricket to focus on the limited-overs formats, ruling him out of the upcoming two-match unofficial Test series against India A starting January 30.

Todd Duncan Astle is a New Zealand cricketer who plays for the New Zealand national cricket team. Astle began his cricket career as an opening batsman, representing New Zealand in the 2006 Under-19 Cricket World Cup, but over time playing first-class cricket for Canterbury he morphed into a bowling all-rounder.

The 33-year-old, who made his Test debut in 2012, played a mere five Tests for the national team, claiming seven wickets at 52.57. With the bat, he scored 98 runs at 19.60.

Supreme Court allows centre to introduce African cheetah to suitable habitat in India

Supreme Court allows centre to introduce African cheetah to suitable habitat in India


The Supreme Court allowed the Centre to introduce the African cheetah to suitable habitat in India. The apex Court's decision followed a petition filed by National Tiger Conservation Authority (NTCA) seeking permission for the introduction of the African cheetah from Namibia as rare Indian cheetah is almost extinct in the country.

The Court also set up a three-member committee, comprising former Director Wildlife of India Ranjit Singh, Director General of Wildlife of India Dhananjay Mohan and Deputy Inspector General, Wildlife, Ministry of Environment and Forests to guide the NTCA in taking a decision on the issue.

A bench comprising Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices B R Gavai and Surya Kant said, the apex court will monitor the project and the committee will submit its report before it every four months.

WHO increased global risk degree of novel coronavirus from moderate to high

WHO increased global risk degree of novel coronavirus from moderate to high

The World Health Organization (WHO) has increased the global risk degree of the novel coronavirus strain 2019-nCoV from moderate to high, citing an error in its previous report.

According to the report, the total number of 2019-nCoV confirmed cases globally till Sunday reached 2,014, including 1,985 in China.

the death toll has reached 106 with around 4000 people infected so far.

Slovenian Prime Minister Marjan Sarec resigned

Slovenian Prime Minister Marjan Sarec resigned

Slovenian Prime Minister Marjan Sarec announced resignation and called for fresh elections

Mr Sarec's resignation came almost at the same time as Finance Minister Andrej Bertoncelj announced that he too would quit.

Mr Sarec, is Slovenia's youngest-ever Prime Minister. He was previously best known as a comedian and political satirist before he launched himself as an anti-establishment politician.

Slovenia, a country in Central Europe, is known for its mountains, ski resorts and lakes.

Capital: Ljubljana
Currency: Euro

Australia to host 11th Indoor Cricket World Cup in October, 2020

Australia to host 11th Indoor Cricket World Cup in October, 2020

Melbourne will be the host city for the 11th edition of the Indoor Cricket World Cup which will held between October 10 and17.

The tournament will be held at the state-of-the-art indoor cricket venues in Melbourne Casey Stadium and CitiPower Centre

Cricketers from up to 10 countries will compete in the tournament in four divisions: under-21 men and women and open men and women.

The Indoor Cricket World Cup is the premier international championship of both men's and women's Indoor Cricket.

The event is organised by the sport's governing body, the World Indoor Cricket Federation (WICF) and is held every two or three years.

The first Indoor Cricket World Cup contest was organised in England in 1995. 

2021 Women's Cricket World Cup

2021 Women's Cricket World Cup

The 2021 ICC Women's Cricket World Cup will be the twelfth edition of the Women's Cricket World Cup and is scheduled to be held in New Zealand between 6 February and 7 March 2021.

New Zealand have qualified automatically as hosts. Originally, it was announced that three more teams would qualify from the ongoing 2017–20 ICC Women's Championship, but in 2018 this was changed to four teams plus the hosts.

The top three teams from a ten-team qualifier will also play in this edition of the Women's World Cup

A total of 31 matches including the semi-finals and a final will be played, with all the matches being broadcast live.

 The opening match will be played at Eden Park, Auckland. The two semi-finals will be played at Seddon Park, Hamilton and Bay Oval, Tauranga, with the final match played at Hagley Oval, Christchurch.

India, Bangladesh sign agreement to upgrade Ashuganj-Akhaura road into 4-lane highway

India, Bangladesh sign agreement to upgrade Ashuganj-Akhaura road into 4-lane highway

India and Bangladesh signed an agreement on Thursday to upgrade the 50.58-kilometre long road between Ashuganj river port and the Akhaura land port in Bangladesh into a 4-lane highway. The deal to upgrade the 39 km long road between Ashuganj river port to Dharhar area was signed between the Roads and Highways Department (RHD) of Bangladesh and an Indian Company Afcons Infrastructure Limited. The RHD and an India-Bangladesh joint venture firm will take up the work of upgrading the remaining part of the road from Dharhar to Akhaura.

The project is part of the dollar 2 billion second line of credit extended by India to Bangladesh in 2016. The project will boost connectivity between Bangladesh and North-eastern part of India which will facilitate sub-regional connectivity among South and South-east Asian countries. Speaking at the signing ceremony, High Commissioner of India to Bangladesh Riva Ganguly Das said development cooperation is an important aspect of India-Bangladesh relations. She said both governments have identified 46 projects in Bangladesh that would improve connectivity within the country and out of the country. Road Transport and Bridges Minister of Bangladesh Obaidul Quader hoped that the work would be completed on time and quality would be maintained.

Norway tops the list in EIU Democracy Index

Norway tops the list in EIU Democracy Index

Norway is at the top with an overall score of 9.71 while North Korea is at the bottom of the index.Overall, 2019 marked the worst year of global democracy score since 2006 when the rankings were first published.

Bangladesh has improved its ranking by 8 points in the EIU Democracy Index released today.

The EIU Democracy Index provides ranking for the state of democracy worldwide in 165 independent states and two territories.The Index measures score under five sub-categories namely electoral process and pluralism, functioning of government; political participation, political culture; and civil liberties.

According to The Economist Intelligence Unit’s measure of democracy, almost one-half of the world’s population live in a democracy of some sort, although only 5.7% reside in a full democracy.More than one-third of the world’s population live under authoritarian rule, with a large share being in China.

UK's Royal Mint Issues Coin In Honour Of The Band 'Queen'

UK's Royal Mint Issues Coin In Honour Of The Band 'Queen'

The Royal Mint in the UK has recently released a new commemorative coin that features the rock band, Queen.

The coin is a part of the 'Music Legends' series and contains the instruments of all four members of the band, Brian May’s Red Special guitar, John Deacon’s Fender Precision bass, Roger Taylor’s Ludwig bass drum and Freddie Mercury’s Bechstein grand piano.

The commemorative coin was designed by Chris Facey

ISRO successfully completes three orbit raising manoeuvres of GSAT-30

ISRO successfully completes three orbit raising manoeuvres of GSAT-30

ISRO has successfully completed the three orbit-raising manoeuvres of communication satellite GSAT-30 and succeeded in placing it in an orbit close to its operational orbit.

The space agency informed yesterday that as planned all manoeuvers were completed successfully using the satellite's propulsion system.

The cumulative duration of operation of the propulsion system for these manuoeuvres was 2 hours 29 minutes. It said, satellite solar panels and antennas have been deployed and the satellite is placed in an orbit with a perigee of 35, 826 km and an apogee of 35,913 km with an inclination of 0.11 deg which is very close to its operational orbit.

The satellite was launched on January 17 onboard Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana. With a mission life of 15 years, GSAT-30 is an operational communication satellite for DTH, television uplink and VSAT services.

Ratchanok Intanon won Indonesia Masters 2020 title

Ratchanok Intanon won Indonesia Masters 2020 title

Thailand's Ratchanok Intanon lifted the Indonesia Badminton Masters 2020 women's singles title after defeating Carolina Marin in the summit clash on Sunday.

Intanon defeated Marin 21-19, 11-21, 21-18 in one hour and twenty minutes long match. The clash went into three-games .

Despite losing the first game, the Spanish shuttler made a comeback in the second game and claimed the game by 21-11. Intanon won the match by claiming the third game by 21-18.

ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup

ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup

The ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup is an international cricket tournament organised by the International Cricket Council contested by national under-19 teams. First contested in 1988, as the Youth World Cup, it was not staged again until 1998.

he 2020 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup is an international limited-overs cricket tournament currently being held in South Africa from 17 January to 9 February 2020

it is the thirteenth edition of the Under-19 Cricket World Cup, and the second to be held in South Africa.

Sixteen teams are taking part in the tournament, split into four groups of four. The top two teams from each group will advance to the Super League, with the bottom two teams in each group progressing to the Plate League. India are the defending champions

ISRO’s GSAT-30 satellite launched, to replace ageing INSAT-4A

ISRO’s GSAT-30 satellite launched, to replace ageing INSAT-4A

The nation's latest communication satellite, GSAT-30, was sent to space from the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou at 2:35 a.m. IST on Friday.

The 3,357-kg satellite will replace INSAT-4A which was launched in 2005 and marks the first mission of the year for Indian Space Research Organisation.

The high-power satellite is equipped with 12 normal C band and 12 Ku band transponders.

GSAT-30 will provide DTH (direct to home) television services, connectivity to VSATs (that support working of banks') ATMs, stock exchange, television uplinking and teleport services, digital satellite news gathering and e-governance applications. The satellite will also be used for bulk data transfer for a host of emerging telecommunication applications

2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup

The 2020 ICC Women's T20 World Cup is scheduled to be the seventh ICC Women's T20 World Cup tournament.

 It is scheduled to be held in Australia between 21 February and 8 March 2020.

The final will take place at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on International Women's Day.

It will be a standalone tournament, held six months ahead of the men's tournament.

 Australia are the defending champions, and will play their opening match of the tournament against India

The tournament will feature 10 teams. The eight top-ranked teams based on finishing positions from the 2018 ICC Women's World Twenty20 qualified automatically. The remaining two qualification spots were determined through the 2019 ICC Women's World Twenty20 Qualifier, with Bangladesh and Thailand progressing.

 It was the first time that Thailand had qualified for a Women's T20 World Cup tournament.

 Following the conclusion of the qualification tournament, Bangladesh were placed in Group A and Thailand were placed in Group B

India is number one shooting nation in world in 2019

India is number one shooting nation in world in 2019

 India finished the year as the top shooting nation in the world, leaving behind Olympic heavyweights China and the USA.

In terms of overall medals, the tally stood at 21 gold, six silver and three bronze as India topped all the Rifle-Pistol World Cups and Finals in a unforgettable year. While India leads the standings with 30 medals overall, China is second with 11 gold, 15 silver and 18 bronze for a total of 44 podium finishes. The USA is placed third with 15 medals including six gold six silver and three bronze.

The number of Olympic quotas, which now stands at a record 15, is not a only refection of the country's rapid rise in the sport over the last one year but also sets up the shooters nicely for a record haul at the Tokyo Games, after the meltdown at Rio de Janeiro. Indian shooting's best show at the Olympics remains the two medals won at London in 2012.

Barcelona sack Ernesto Valverde and appoint Quique Setien

Barcelona sack Ernesto Valverde and appoint Quique Setien

Barcelona have sacked coach Ernesto Valverde and replaced him with former Real Betis coach Quique Setien.

Valverde, 55, helped the club to two successive La Liga titles and they lead on goal difference this season.

Ernesto Valverde Tejedor is a Spanish retired footballer who played as a forward

He played for six teams in a 14-year professional career, including Espanyol, Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao

Valverde later went on to have an extensive spell as a manager, including being in charge of all three clubs. He won the double title with Olympiacos in 2008–09 and 2011–12, and Barcelona in 2017–18.

Novak Djokovic leads Serbia to glory against Spain in inaugural ATP Cup

Novak Djokovic leads Serbia to glory against Spain in inaugural ATP Cup


 The ATP Cup is an international outdoor hard court men's tennis tournament between competing nations, which premiered in January 2020. The tournament is played across three Australian cities over ten days in the lead up to the Australian Open and features teams from 24 countries.

The event sees the return of an ATP team competition into the calendar for the first time since the ATP World Team Cup, which was held in Düsseldorf from 1978 to 2012. The inaugural tournament took place between 3 and 12 January 2020 and was played in Sydney, Brisbane, and Perth. Sydney hosts its first three finals between 2020 and 2022

The 2020 ATP Cup was the first edition of the ATP Cup, an international outdoor hard court men's tennis tournament held by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP). Serving as the opener for the 2020 ATP Tour, it was the first ATP team tournament since the last edition of the World Team Cup in 2012. It was held at three venues in the Australian cities of Brisbane, Perth, and Sydney.

Serbia won the tournament, defeating Spain 2–1 in the final

Novak Djokovic has now beaten Rafael Nadal 29 times in 55 matches

Serena Williams won the Auckland Classic in New Zealand

Serena Williams won the Auckland Classic in New Zealand

Serena Williams won her first tennis title in three years by beating fellow American Jessica Pegula 6-3, 6-4 in the Auckland Classic in New Zealand .

The 23-time Grand Slam singles winner last won a  singles title in 2017, when she won the Australian Open.

 she would donate her prize money to the Australian bushfire fund.


Serena Jameka Williams is an American professional tennis player and former world No. 1. She has won 23 major singles titles, the most by any man or woman in the Open Era. The Women's Tennis Association ranked her world No. 1 in singles on eight separate occasions between 2002 and 2017

Dhaka International Film Festival began

Dhaka International Film Festival began

The 18th Dhaka International Film Festival was inaugurated on Saturday 

The festival kicked off with the screening of the Spanish-Greek film Window to the Sea, directed by Miguel Angel Jimenez, at Bangladesh National Museum (BNM).

During the festival 220 films from 74 countries will be screened across various venues in Dhaka between 11-19 January

More than 100 film makers and other personalities from the movie world are participating in the event over the next eight days.

The films have been selected in eight categories including Asian Competition Section, Retrospective, Bangladesh Panorama, cinema of the world and Women Filmmakers. In the Retrospective section four films by Polish director duo Joanna Kos-Krauzey and Krysztof Krauze will be screened.

Bangladesh Panaroma will showcase eight films — Amra Ekta Cinema Banabo, Mayaboti, Shuttle Train, Chandrabati Kotha, Tunes of Nostalgia, Maya - The Lost Mother, Nigrohokal and No Dorai.

Apart from film screening, conference on the theme of women in cinema will also be organsied during the festival.

The theme of the festival is "Better Film, Better Audience and Better Society"

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas   is a celebratory day observed (starting in 2015) on 9 January by the Republic of India to mark the contribution of the overseas Indian community towards the development of India.

The day commemorates the return of Mahatma Gandhi from South Africa to Ahmedabad on 9 January 1915.

Established in 2003 the celebratory event is organised by the Ministry of External Affairs every year on this day.

On the occasion of 16th Pravasi Bhartiya Divas today, External Affairs Ministry will interact with Indian Diaspora across the globe through a digital video conference.

China successfully launched new communication technology experiment satellite

China successfully launched new communication technology experiment satellite

 China sent a new communication technology experiment satellite into space from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province at 11:20 p.m. (Beijing Time)ues, Tday.

The satellite has entered the preset orbit. It will be used in communication, radio, television and data transmission, as well as high throughput technology test.

The satellite was launched on a Long March-3B carrier rocket. It was the 324th mission for the Long March series carrier rockets.

The new satellite and the carrier rocket were developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology and the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.

Pedro Sanchez re-elected as the PM of Spain

Pedro Sánchez Pérez-Castejón   is a Spanish politician serving as Prime Minister of Spain since 2 June 2018.

On 7 January 2020, Mr Pedro Sanchez was confirmed as the Prime Minister of Spain

Spain, a country on Europe’s Iberian Peninsula, includes 17 autonomous regions with diverse geography and cultures.

Capital: Madrid
Currency: Euro

Daniele de Rossi retired from football

Daniele de Rossi retired from football

Daniele De Rossi is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. He is mostly known for his time playing with his hometown club Roma in Serie A. He is also a former Italy national team player

De Rossi made his professional debut with Roma during the 2001–02 season, and made his Serie A debut the following year. With the club, he won the Coppa Italia twice in 2007 and 2008, and the 2007 Supercoppa Italiana. He was named Serie A Young Footballer of the Year in 2006  and the Serie A Italian Footballer of the Year in 2009.

De Rossi represented Italy at under-19, under-20, under-21 and senior levels, winning the 2004 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship, and also represented Italy at the 2004 Olympics, winning a bronze medal.

He was part of the 2006 FIFA World Cup-winning squad

De Rossi is Italy's fourth most-capped player with 117 caps and Francesco Totti is the only player to have made more appearances for Roma than the midfielder.

77th Golden Globe Awards,

 The 77th Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and American television of 2019, were broadcast live from The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California on January 5, 2020, by NBC. It was produced by Dick Clark Productions and the HFPA. Ricky Gervais hosted the ceremony for the fifth and final time.

Best Motion Picture, Drama

“1917”

Best Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

“Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood”

Best Director, Motion Picture

Sam Mendes, “1917”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Drama

Renée Zellweger, “Judy”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

Awkwafina, “The Farewell”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Laura Dern, “Marriage Story”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Drama

Joaquin Phoenix, “Joker”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture, Musical or Comedy

Taron Egerton, “Rocketman”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture

Brad Pitt, “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood”

Best Screenplay, Motion Picture

Quentin Tarantino, “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood”

Best Original Score, Motion Picture

Hildur Gudnadottir, “Joker”

Best Original Song, Motion Picture

“I’m Gonna Love Me Again” — “Rocketman”

Best Motion Picture, Animated

“Missing Link”

Best Motion Picture, Foreign Language

“Parasite” (South Korea)

Television

Best Television Series, Drama

“Succession”

Best Television Series, Musical or Comedy

“Fleabag”

Best Television Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

“Chernobyl”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Drama

Olivia Colman, “The Crown”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy

Phoebe Waller-Bridge, “Fleabag”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Limited Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television

Michelle Williams, “Fosse/Verdon”

Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Patricia Arquette, “The Act”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Drama

Brian Cox, “Succession”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series, Musical or Comedy

Ramy Youssef, “Ramy”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Limited Series or a Motion Picture Made for Television

Russell Crowe, “The Loudest Voice”

Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Limited Series or Motion Picture Made for Television

Chinese paddlefish, native to the Yangtze River, declared extinct by scientists

Chinese paddlefish, native to the Yangtze River, declared extinct by scientists

The Chinese paddlefish, one of the world’s largest freshwater fish species and a native of the Yangtze River system, has been declared extinct.

Also known as the Chinese swordfish, the species grows up to 7 metres long and is believed to have vanished between 2005 and 2010. 

The last confirmed sighting of the giant fish – known in China as the “king of freshwater fish” – was in 2003. It had been on the IUCN’s critically endangered list since 1996 as its population declined due to overfishing and environmental degradation in its Yangtze habitat. The IUCN experts said there had been no imaging evidence of the species since 2009.

two other species native to Asia’s longest river have been declared functionally extinct – the reeves shad, a type of fish, in 2015 and the baiji, or Yangtze River dolphin, in 2006. The finless porpoise
and the Chinese sturgeon are on the critically endangered list.

The river system has more than 4,000 aquatic species, but dam-building, overfishing, busy water traffic and pollution have taken a toll, with fish stocks dwindling and biodiversity in rapid decline.

 

Irfan Pathan announces retirement from all forms of Cricket

Irfan Pathan announces retirement from all forms of Cricket

Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan today announced his retirement from all forms of Cricket. Irfan,   made his Team India debut at the age of 19 in 2003.

He last played for India in October 2012. He played 29 Tests, 120 ODIs and 24 T20Is. He was part of the victorious Indian team at the 2007 World Twenty20 and was the man-of-the-match in the final

One of his best performances came on the tour of Pakistan in 2006 when he became the second Indian after Harbhajan Singh to take a Test hat-trick in karachi

Inaugural edition of revamped ATP Tennis Cup team event started in Australia

Inaugural edition of revamped ATP Tennis Cup team event started  in Australia

The inaugural edition of the revamped ATP Tennis Cup team event started  in Australia . A total of 24 nations, split into six groups, will be contesting in Perth, Brisbane and Sydney for over 10 days for the first time.

Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic are among those who will be looking for a winning start ahead of the Australian Open Tennis Tournament beginning on 20th of this month. While Federer, Nishikori and Murray are missing, most of the world's top 30 men are playing.

 The opening day today will feature plenty of blockbuster matches. In Group F, Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas will meet Denis Shapovalov of Canada in Brisbane's day session. Germany’s Alexander Zverev will face home favourite Alex de Minaur in the night session. In Group D, World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev of Russia will battle Italy’s Fabio Fognini in Perth's night session.

Manav Thakkar became world no.1 in latest International Table Tennis Federation rankings

Manav Thakkar became world no.1 in latest International Table Tennis Federation rankings

Young Indian paddler Manav Thakkar today became world no.1 in the latest International Table Tennis Federation (ITTF) rankings in the Under-21 men's singles category.

With this, Thakkar became the fourth Indian to achieve the feat after Harmeet Desai, G Sathiyan and Soumyajit Ghosh.

Among other Indians, G. Sathiyan has managed to retain his 30th spot in the senior category. Achanta Sharath Kamal has climbed a spot to 33rd position. Top woman paddler, Manika Batra was static at the 61st position.

The 19-year-old  Manav Thakkar achieved the top spot after clinching the Under-21 men's singles title at the ITTF Challenge Plus Benemax-Virgo North American Open in Markham, Canada in December last year. Thakkar was also world no. 1 in the Under-18 category in February 2018. He was part of the Indian men's team which won a bronze medal in the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta.

Umaro Sissoco Embaló won presidential election in Guinea-Bissau

Umaro Sissoco Embaló   won presidential election in Guinea-Bissau

In the West African state of Guinea-Bissau, Opposition leader Umaro Sissoco Embalo has won presidential elections, picking up 53.55 per cent of votes.

His rival Domingos Simoes Pereira, head of the country's ruling party PAIGC, bagged 46.45 percent votes.

National Electoral Commission (CNE) President Jose Pedro Sambu announced the result.

Umaro Mokhtar Sissoco Embaló is the president-elect of Guinea-Bissau. He is a political scientist and military officer of Guinea Bissau who served as the prime minister of his country between November 18, 2016 and January 16, 2018

Guinea-Bissau is a tropical country on West Africa’s Atlantic coast that’s known for national parks and wildlife.

Capital: Bissau
Currency: West African CFA franc

UK will increase minimum wage by four times of inflation

UK  will increase minimum wage by four times of  inflation

In Britain, Boris Johnson's government today decided to increase the minimum wage of the workers by more than four times the rate of UK inflation from next year.

a 6.2-percent increase from April will take the national living wage for workers aged 25 and over from 8.21 pounds to a minimum of 8.72 pounds.

it was the biggest increase in the wage since 2016. Almost three million people would be benefited from the increase.