Today's GK(6-10-13)

Malala invited to meet Queen Elizabeth

Impressed by the bravery of Pakistani girls’ education campaigner Malala Yousafzai, Queen Elizabeth II has invited her to the Buckingham Palace.

The Queen has also asked Pakistan’s high commissioner to the UK, Wajid Shamsul Hasan, about her recovery, the Sunday Times reported on Sunday.

Malala has given her first detailed account to the British newspaper of what happened when she was shot on the way home from school in Pakistan a year ago.

“I was terrified. Where were my parents? Who had brought me there?” she said, in reference to her four operations in Britain and crediting the surgeons for giving her a ‘second life’.

“I didn’t know what had happened. The nurses weren’t telling me anything. Even my name. Was I still Malala? No one told me what was going on or who had brought me to the hospital,” recalled Malala.

She then became so worried about the cost of her treatment that she thought of sneaking out of hospital to get a job. “I thought, ‘I need to go out and start working to earn money,’” she said.

Petroleum Ministry launches 5 kg LPG cylinder scheme

Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister M. Veerappa Moily launched the 5-kg LPG cylinder scheme, on a pilot basis, in four metros, and inter-company LPG portability in 24 cities across the country here on Saturday.

Speaking after the launch, Mr. Moily said the Vijay Kelkar Committee, appointed by the Ministry, was preparing a road map to make India self-sufficient in oil and natural gas by 2030.

“Be it our government or that of the National Democratic Alliance, the road map would be in place by the desired time.”

The Ministry had already started work on setting up an oil refinery at Barmer in Rajasthan, where huge oil and natural gas reserves had been found. The Hindustan Petroleum Corporation was setting up the refinery.

The 5-kg cylinders would initially be sold through selected company-owned and company-operated (COCO) outlets of public sector oil marketing companies (OMCs) in 11 places — three in Bangalore, two in Mumbai, three in Kolkata and three in Chennai. Depending upon customer response during the three-month pilot period, the facility would be extended to other parts of the country.

Rohan Bopanna-Edouard Roger Vasselin won Japan Open 2013

India’s lawn tennis player Rohan Bopanna with French partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin won the Rakuten Japan Open tennis championship (Men's Doubles) on 6 October 2013 in Tokyo. They won the cash prize of the 1297000 US dollars. The fourth seeded Indo-French pair emerged victorious with a 7-6 (5) 6-4 scoreline against the Briton-Australian pair of Jemie Murray and John Peers in one hour and 17 minutes.

Bopanna had won his first title of the 2013 season in February 2013 when he triumphed at ATP 250 event in Marseille, France paired with Colin Fleming of Britain.

He had also reached the final of Rome Masters with compatriot Mahesh Bhupathi but lost in the final. Bopanna and his French partner had a really tough battle in the final match of Japan Open

Pakistan won Under-19 Asian Rugby Championship 2013

Pakistan on 5 October 2013 defeated India in the final of the Under-19 Asian Rugby Championship 2013 in Lahore. Pakistan won the final match with the margin of 13-11 points.

India and Bangladesh jointly inaugurated India-Bangladesh Grid Inter-connection

Bheramara: India-Bangladesh Grid Inter-connection jointly inauguarated here

India and Bangladesh on 5 October 2013 jointly inaugurated the India-Bangladesh Grid Inter-connection at Bheramara in Bangladesh. The joint venture was launched through video-conferencing from New Delhi. Speaking on the occasion, the Prime Minister described today's inauguration as an important milestone in connecting the two countries and the border region through a growing web of cross-border energy links and trade. The Prime Minister also assured Bangladesh that India will remain a steadfast and long-term partner in development efforts.

The transmission line in High Voltage Direct Current, HVDC, in Bheramara, will provide a safe and reliable interconnection between the power grids of the two countries. Dr Singh said, this will enable the supply of 500 megawatts of power from India to Bangladesh.  The initiative undertaken today will strengthen the bonds of friendship between the two countries and add a new dimension to bilateral relations.

The initiative being undertaken today strengthen the bonds of friendship between India and Bangladesh and add a rich new dimension to our bilateral relation. Economic development is the biggest challenge for all countries in South Asia. Our destinies are interlinked and so must our economy be.
Both the Prime Ministers also jointly laid the foundation stone for 1320 megawatt Maitri Thermal Power Project, being developed by Bangladesh-India friendship power-company which is a joint venture of India's NTPC and Bangladesh Power Development Board.

The historic event has taken India Bangladesh relations to a greater height. The 500 MW of power which will become available to Bangladesh in November 2013 will substantially help to bridge the power deficit in Bangladesh.