1. US to deploy troops in Cameroon to fight Boko Haram
(i) In October 2015, US president Barack Obama announced that US will deploy its armed
forces in Cameroon to fight militant group Boko Haram.
(ii) The Western African nations of
Chad and Cameroon have been attacked by Boko Haram in recent times. The US has
thus deployed 90 military personnel to Cameroon.
(iii) The plan is to deploy send 300 troops that will support the operation of unarmed MQ-1 Predator drones to conduct surveillance and reconnaissance operations against the militant group.
2. China operationalises the largest dam in Tibet
(i) On October 13, 2015, China operationalised the largest dam in Tibet over the river Brahmaputra named-Zam Hydropower Station.
(ii) Built at a cost of approximately Rs.9764 crores, the station (a.k.a the Zangmu Hydropower Station) will harness the rich water resources of Brahmaputra river and is expected to produces 2.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity a year.
3. Portugal becomes first European country to sign MoU with India on Nalanda University
(i) In a recent development, Portugal became the first European country to ink an MoU with India’s on the establishment of Nalanda University.
(ii) The agreement was signed in New Delhi between Portuguese Ambassador to India Ana Martinho and Dr Jitendra Nath Misra, India’s Ambassador to Portugal.
(iii) The revived university formally started operations in 2014 and serves as a non-profit secular and self-governing international institution engaged in intellectual, academic and philosophical studies, among others.
4. 4th International Tourism Mart organised in Gangtok
(i) The 4th International Tourism Mart has been organised in Gangtok, Sikkim from October 14-16.
(ii) The Union Ministry of Tourism in association with the north-eastern states and West Bengal in order promote the region as a vibrant tourist destination.
(iii) Delegates from 27 countries, sellers from the north-east as well as West Bengal participated in the event.
5. Shipping Ministry plans to develop 78 lighthouses
(i) The Ministry of Shipping in association with the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships (DGLL), has formulated an ambitious plan to develop 78 lighthouses in India as centres of tourism in the first phase under public private partnership (PPP).
(ii) The identified lighthouses are in Gujarat, Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Lakshadweep, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, West Bengal and Andaman and Nicobar.
(iii) The decision was taken after recording high tourist footfalls at the Mahabalipuram and Cannanore lighthouses.
6. Harvard Humanitarian of the Year award conferred on Kailash Satyarthi
(i) Nobel laureate Kailash Satyarthi was recently selected for the Harvard Humanitarian of the Year award.
(ii) Conferred annually by the Harvard University, the award recognises contribution of individuals whose work serves to improve the quality of lives and inspires people to attain greater heights.
(iii) Instituted in 1984, it has been awarded to Martin Luther King Sr., Ban Ki-moon, Malala Yousafzai, among others.
7. UNESCO designates
Han Meilin as the Artist for Peace
(i) Recently, Chinese painter, sculptor and designer Han Meilin was recently chosen as the Unesco Artist for Peace in Paris.
(ii) Director General of Unesco Irina Bokova said that Han was chosen “in recognition of his commitment to promoting art and artistic education, his support to providing quality education to young people.”
(iii)Han’s selection coincides with Unesco’s 70th anniversary.
8. N Venugopal Rao appointed as the CEO of Reliance Power
(i) On October 13, 2015, Reliance Power appointed N Venugopala Rao as its CEO.
(ii) Earlier Rao was CEO of Sasan Power Limited, a 100% subsidiary of Reliance Power known to have developed the world’s largest integrated coal mine and power project.
(iii) He has 34 years of experience in project development, project finance, project planning, among others.
9. Zaheer Khan to retire from international cricket
(i) On October 15, 2015, one of India’s fast bowlers, Zaheer Khan announced his retirement from international cricket.
(ii) Khan has so far has played 92 Test matches, 200 ODIs and 17 T20 Internationals. In 92 test matches, he has taken 311 wickets.
(iii) He is the fourth highest wicket-taker, the first three being Anil Kumble (619), Kapil Dev (434) and Harbhajan Singh (417).
(iv) His contribution was crucial for India’s 2011 World Cup win as he took 21 wickets in the tournament.
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