October

• 12 October - Pope Benedict XVI announces the canonization of Sister Alphonsa Muttathupadathu, the first woman of Indian origin to be canonized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, and the first canonized saint of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.
• 22 October Launched Chandrayaan-1 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh at 06:22 IST (00:52 UTC). The vehicle was successfully inserted into lunar orbit on 8 November 2008.