1. C. Dhaka
Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport is the largest and most prominent international airport in Bangladesh. It is located in the northern part of the capital city Dhaka and is also used by the Bangladesh Air Force. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh (CAAB) operates and maintains the airport, which is the primary hub of the national flag carrier “Biman Bangladesh Airlines”. It started operations in 1980, taking over from “Tejgaon Airport” as the principal international airport of the country and was formerly known as “Dacca International Airport” and later as “Zia International Airport”, before being named in honour of “Shah Jalal”, who is one of the most respected Sufi saints of Bangladesh. The IATA (International Air Transport Association) code of the airport "DAC" is derived from "Dacca", which is the previously used spelling for "Dhaka".
2. B. Serendipity
Sri Lanka has been known by several different names during its long history of over 2,500 years. According to the Mahavamsa (An epic poem written in Pali covering the period between the arrival of Prince Vijaya from India in 543 BCE to the reign of Mahasena of Anuradhapura in A.D. 302), the legendary Prince Vijaya named the land “Tambapanni” (copper-red hands) because his followers' hands were reddened by the red soil of the area. In Hindu mythology, such as the Ramayana, the island was referred to as Lanka meaning simply 'Island'. The name “Simhala” is attested as a Sanskrit name of the island of Sri Lanka in the “Bhagavata Purana” and “Rajatarangini”. The name is sometimes glossed as "abode of lions", and attributed to a supposed former abundance of lions on the island. The Tamil term “Eelam” was used to designate the whole island in Sangam literature. Ancient Greek geographers called it “Taprobana” inspired from the name “Tambapanni”. The Persians and Arabs referred to it as “Serandip” (the origin of the English word "serendipity") from Sanskrit “Simhaladvipah”. “Ceilao”, the name given to Sri Lanka by the Portuguese Empire when it arrived in 1505, was transliterated into English as “Ceylon”. As a British crown colony, the island was known as “Ceylon”; it achieved independence as “Ceylon” in 1948. In 1972, “Ceylon” was formally changed to “Republic of Sri Lanka” when it got rid of the British Dominion Status. The name “Sri Lanka” was introduced in the context of the Sri Lankan independence movement in the first half of the 20th century, particularly by the “Marxist Lanka Sama Samaja Party”, regarded as the first political party in the British Ceylon.
The word “serendipity”, which means “occurrence of an unplanned fortunate discovery”, was first coined and used by Horace Walpole (son of Britain’s first Prime Minister Robert Walpole) in his letter to Horace Mann in 1754 which later gained widespread popularity. In his letter, Walpole explained an unexpected discovery he had made about a lost painting by reference to a Persian fairy tale, “The Three Princes of Serendip”. The princes, as per Walpole, were "always making discoveries, by accidents and sagacity, of things which they were not in quest of."
3. C. Libya
(Muammar Gaddafi)
The International Cricket Stadium in Lahore, originally named "Lahore Stadium" was renamed in 1974 in honour of the former Libyan leader “Colonel Muammar Gaddafi” following a speech he gave at the “2nd Organization of the Islamic Conference” meeting in Lahore in favour of Pakistan's right to pursue nuclear weapons. The stadium houses the headquarters of the Pakistan Cricket Board making it the home of Pakistan cricket team. The Stadium was the host for the final match of the 1996 Cricket World Cup.
4. C. Maldives
(Logo of BIMSTEC)
The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) is an international organisation of seven nations of South Asia and South East Asia - Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Nepal and Bhutan - among the countries dependent on the Bay of Bengal. The permanent secretariat of BIMSTEC was established in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2004.
(BIMSTEC Nations)
On 6 June 1997, BIST-EC (Bangladesh, India, Sri Lanka, and Thailand Economic Cooperation), a new sub-regional grouping was formed in Bangkok. Following the inclusion of Myanmar in 1997 during a special Ministerial Meeting in Bangkok, the Group was renamed ‘BIMST-EC’ (Bangladesh, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand Economic Cooperation). In 1998, Nepal became an observer. In February 2004, Nepal and Bhutan become full members.
On 31 July 2004, in the first Summit, the grouping was renamed as BIMSTEC or “the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation”.
5. B. Maldives
In November 1988, a group of 80-200 Sri Lankan militants from the “People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam” (PLOTE), backed by Maldivian businessman Abdulla Luthufi, mounted a coup in the Maldives. After infiltrating the country’s capital of Male, the militants spread out and seized key areas in the city in an attempt to overthrow the then President Abdul Gayoom. Gayoom, however, escaped by taking refuge in the Maldives National Security Service headquarters. President Abdul Gayoom reached out to a number of nations, including India. Under the guidance of then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, India responded with an overwhelming speed and efficiency. Less than 16 hours since President Gayoom’s call, the 44 Squadron of the Indian Air Force leaving from the Agra Air Force Station on an Ilyushin Il-76 aircraft landed at Hulhule Airport, barely a kilometre from the besieged capital. The Indian troops quickly began their advance into the capital using commandeered boats and rescued President Gayoom, driving out the militants with no casualties to the Indian side.
(Rajiv Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi with Maummon Abdul Gayoom and Mrs. Gayoom at the official residence of the Maldives President at Male of February 7, 1986)
The highly successful operation, coded as “Operation Cactus” was testimony to the fact that India could play a vital role in ensuring security in Asia.
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