Bhagat Singh road in Pakistan:
Pakistani authorities have renamed a road crossing in Lahore after freedom fighter Bhagat Singh to acknowledge his revolutionary spirit and his role in the movement against the erstwhile British rulers of the subcontinent. The Shadman Chowk of Lahore will now be known as Bhagat Singh Chowk. Bhagat Singh was hanged in March 1931 in the Lahore Jail, which stood at the spot where the roundabout was built later. While authorities have changed the Hindu names of several places in the old quarters of Lahore over the years, the decision to rename a busy roundabout after Bhagat Singh has been appreciated by some local residents as a bold move.
Global biodiversity meet begins:
The mega 19-day, global biodiversity event -- the 11th Conference of Parties (COP) to Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) -- kick- started on 1 October with the inauguration of a meeting on the implementation of Cartagena Protocol on Bio-safety by Union Environment Minister Jayanthi Natarajan. While 9,000 delegates from 193 countries participated in the deliberations, the five-day sixth meeting relating to Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Cartagena Protocol on Bio-safety (COP MOP), saw the presence of around 2,000 delegates from 150 countries. At COP MOP, a host of issues will be discussed and decisions adopted for ensuring the safe transfer, handling and use of Living Modified Organisms(LMOs) resulting from modern biotechnology. Besides providing further guidance on operation of Bio-safety Clearing House (BCH), it will also adopt means of mobilising additional financial resources for implementation of the Protocol, a framework and action plan for capacity building and encourage parties to expedite domestic ratification to the Supplementary Protocol on liability and redress, among others. At COP-11 beginning October 8, delegates will review the progress of the ‘Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020’ and address ways to strengthen its implementation.
Consensus reached on setting up BRICS Bank:
Think tanks of five member--Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa- BRICS bloc, representing the emerging economies, reached consensus on creating a BRICS development bank to complement existing global financial institutions like World Bank
India calls for total elimination of Chemical Weapons, WMDs:
India on 2 October stressed the importance of total elimination of chemical weapons and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs) and called for universal adherence to international legal norms and Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC). Speaking at a special meeting of the Organisation for Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in New York to mark 15 years of the CWC, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said India viewed the Convention as a unique, multilaterally negotiated and non-discriminatory disarmament instrument, which served as a model for elimination of an entire category of weapons of mass destruction. The Minister told the meeting that the international legal norms against the use of chemical weapons anywhere must not be breached.
Russia rejects Pak plea for Kashmir mediation:
Russia on 4 October ruled out playing a role in resolving the Kashmir problem, saying India and Pakistan were capable of settling their outstanding issues themselves.
Pak SC gives govt more time to amend Swiss draft:
Pakistan Supreme Court 5 October objected to contents of a fresh draft of a letter to be sent to Swiss authorities over graft charges against President Asif Ali Zardari and gave government time until October 10 to finalise it in accordance with its order that sought revival of the cases.