After three years of often frustrating political and diplomatic wrangling, the nuclear deal was finally signed at a ceremony at the State Department in Washington, DC.

Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee sealed the deal with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. The deal lifts a ban on US-Indian civilian nuclear trade imposed after India’s first nuclear test in 1974.

The country launched its first unmanned moon mission on October 22, 2008, blasting its Chandrayaan satellite into space from an island off the Bay of Bengal, using a domestically produced rocket system. The Indian flag was painted on the sides of Moon Impact Probe (MIP).

Sister Alphonsa from Kerala was canonised and elevated to sainthood by the Vatican. She is the first Indian to join an illustrious league of saints, the highest honour the church bestows on a person. She was a nun from a remote village in Kerala who died 62 years ago, and several miracles have been attributed to her. The Sister became the blessed Alphonsa after her beatification in Kottayam in 1986 by Pope John Paul II; and once a miracle was attributed to her, the path to sainthood was clear.

Raj Thackeray and his Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) were the two names that hogged the headlines for the wrong reasons. Thackeray stoked up regional hatred by launching an offensive against the immigrants from north Indian states in Maharashtra, and Mumbai in particular.

Ratan Tata formally announced the withdrawal of the Nano project from Singur on October 3, 2008. The mayhem surrounding Nano made it look like a distant dream and the one-lakh rupee car somehow seemed more elusive than the world’s most expensive luxury cars.

The Left Front, one of the constituents of the UPA government, decided to withdraw its support to the UPA government,forcing the government into a crisis. He government found an ally in Samajwadi Party who said it would vote in support of the deal. July 22 was chosen as the date for the trust vote. On July 23, amid chaos and repeated adjournments, the Manmohan Singh-led government finally landed in the safe zone with 275 votes polled in favour and 256 against it.

Much to the chagrin of the UPA government, inflation rate almost doubled during the three months of 2008 to reach the 39-month high mark of 7 per cent. Although 2008 began with inflation rate of 3.79 per cent for week ended January 5, prices rose as the year progressed.

The wholesale price based inflation crossed 4 per cent by the end of January and 5 per cent in February. As per the latest data, the price line rose 7 per cent in the week ended March 22.
The annual rate of inflation since January, according to official data, has gone up by 3.21 per cent with highest increase of 1.98 being recorded during the four weeks ended March 22.

The Global Financial Crisis of 2008 is a major financial crisis, which is ongoing as of December 2008. It became prominently visible in September 2008 with the failure, merger or conservatorship of several large United States-based financial firms. The underlying causes leading to the crisis had been reported in business journals for many months before September, with commentary about the financial stability of leading U.S. and European investment banks, insurance firms and mortgage banks consequent to the sub prime mortgage crisis.

Barack Obama rode a wave of voter discontent to an historic White House victory, promising change as the first black U.S. president but facing enormous challenges from a deep economic crisis and two lingering wars.

Obama led Democrats to a sweeping victory that expanded their majorities in both houses of Congress as Americans emphatically rejected Republican President George W. Bush’s eight years of leadership.

The 2008 Mumbai attacks were a series of ten coordinated terrorist attacks across Mumbai, India’s financial capital and its largest city. The attacks, carried out by Pakistani terrorists using automatic weapons and grenades, began on 26 November 2008 and ended on 29 November 2008. At least 173 people were killed and at least 308 were injured in the attacks.

Eight of the attacks occurred in South Mumbai, at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, the Oberoi Trident, the Taj Mahal Palace & Tower, Leopold Cafe, Cama Hospital, the Orthodox Jewish-owned Nariman House, the Metro Cinema, and a lane behind the Times of India building behind St. Xavier’s College. There was also an explosion at the Mazagaon docks in Mumbai’s port area, and a taxi blast at Vile Parle.

By the early morning of 28 November, all sites except for the Taj Mahal Palace had been secured by Mumbai Police and security forces. An action by India’s National Security Guards on 29 November resulted in the conclusion of the Taj Mahal Palace encounter, ending all fighting in the attacks.

Ajmal Amir, the only terrorist who was captured alive, disclosed that the attackers were members of Lashkar-e-Toiba, the Pakistan-based militant organization, considered a terrorist organization by India, the United States, and the United Kingdom, among others The Indian Government said that the attackers came from Pakistan, and their controllers were in Pakistan. The attacks drew widespread condemnation across the world.

Nation pay homage to those who gave their lives for the nation

February 9 - Baba Amte, Indian social activist

August 1 - Harkishan Singh Surjeet, Indian politician

November 27 - Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Indian Prime Minister