- PM Lays Foundation Stone of Rs 30 crore National Press Centre
- Foundation stone for Trauma Centre laid
- BARC Develops device helpful in Combating Nuclear Terrorrism
- Defence Transactions being investigated by Venkataswami Commission
- Abhayankar appointed as Special Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs
- Supreme Court orders to regulate anti-venom Units
- National Defence University planned
- India-France agree to intensify Trade and economic cooperation
- India and Kenya sign MoU for Technical Cooperation in Telecom
- France keen to assist Indian urban infrastructure projects
PM Lays Foundation Stone of Rs 30 crore National Press Centre
New Delhi: A National Press Centre with state of the art facilities for the media persons is to set-up in New Delhi. The Prime Minister of India, Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee laid the foundation stone of the building complex at 7, Raisina Road on December 05, 2001. The proposed project is estimated to cost about Rs. 30 crores.
The Press Information Bureau, the nodal central government agency to disseminate information and presently functioning from Shastri Bhawan, has been finding it difficult to meet the functional requirements of the media which have multiplied manifold, both quantitatively and qualitatively. The revolution in the field of electronic media and information technology during the last five years has added new dimensions to both the news gathering and news dissemination fields.
The proposed National Press Centre seeks to provide, under one roof, a platform for Indian and foreign journalists (visiting and Delhi based) as a news source as well as a dissemination and service centre for providing professional in-puts. It will have a Press Conference Hall with live telecast and online facilities, briefing and discussion rooms, audio-video recording studios, editing services, video conferencing facilities, workrooms with internet enabled workstations, film auditorium equipped for post-screening question-answer sessions, computerized library and research facilities, archives, a most modern telecommunication centre, distribution outlets, and air and rail reservation facilities, booking of telecom services like uplinking and transmission.
The Centre will have a large lounge with TV screens, restaurants/cafeteria, events merchandising and a Bank. A Dispensary and Stress Management and Fitness Centre may also be added to the Complex. It may include facilities for professional pursuits like training and seminar workshops for reporters, luncheon discussions, webcast and satellite booking facilities, photo transmission, audio-video clipping service, job listings, online press conferencing, telephone bookings of video and audio and transcripts. The disemmination nucleus of Press Information Bureau would be available for meeting the professional needs of the mediapersons.
Situated in the Centre of the Capital with proximity of the National Press Centre to the Central Secretariat, Parliament, Rashtriapati Bhawan, Media Organizations like PTI, UNI, AIR, Doordarshan, INS, Press Club of India, Foreign Correspondents Club, Women Press Corps and several national dailies it is likely to become a vibrant hub of media activities in this part of the world.
The Minister of Information and Broadcasting, Smt. Sushma Swaraj in her address said that the National Press Centre will have all the modern facilities to cater to the needs of the mediapersons and would complete with the best of such centres in the world. She expressed her gratitude to the Prime Minister for laying the foundation stone and blessing the project. She also thanked the Home Minister, Advani for his support, Shri Ananth Kumar for his personal interest and expediting the allotment of the plot and the Minister for State for agriculture, Shripad Yesso Naik for very readily agreeing to vacate the house for the proposed project.
The Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation Minister, i Ananth Kumar said that the proposed National Press Centre is a new millennium gift to the mediapersons from the Prime Minister. The construction would start in right earnest and be completed in 18 months, he said. The Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Shri Ramesh Bais welcomed the guests.
December 03, 2001
The Minister for Health and Family Welfare, Dr. C.P. Thakur, today unveiled the foundation stone of the Jay Prakash Narayan Trauma Centre of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The Centre is proposed to established in a 14.35 acre plot at Raj Nagar on the Ring Road in the capital at a cost Rs.55 crore.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Thakur said that the proposed Trauma Centre with a bed strength of 140 would have the state-of-the art technology and be connected with all Trauma Centres across the country. He said that the proposed Centre would later be converted into the National Centre for Trauma Care. Recently the Government had approved a scheme to provide Rs.1.5 crore each to State hospitals on National Highways to upgrade the Trauma Care facilities. Dr. Thakur recalled that the Government had also approved projects worth Rs.120 crore to upgrade facilities at AIIMS, which include setting up of two dharamshalas with 268 bed capacity as also the Centre for Dental Education and Research. In addition the bed strength at Cardio-thorasic, Neuro-surgery, IRCH and Emergency blocks would be expanded, he added.
The JPN Trauma Centre will be used for training of specialists, paramedics and other personnel. Specialized training in telemedicine will be provided at the proposed centre to enable specialists at other centres to treat patients at their respective centres and to refer only those cases that require very special care. A Trauma Information Division will also be set up as part of the Centre.
BARC Develops device helpful in Combating Nuclear Terrorrism The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) has developed a device that can dedect even special nuclear materials and give alarm. The device can play a vital role in the detection of unauthorised movement and transportation of special nuclear materials and items. Since the device not only detects but also raises alarm, it thus forms an important element in combating nuclear terrorism.
In the meantime, the BARC has also begun developing a technology demonstration project for the utilisation of thorium in electricity generation. An advanced heavy water reactor with a capacity of 235 MW is being developed for this. The construction of the reactor is expected to begin during the 10th Plan.
Utilisation of thorium reserves for electricity generation is a long-term perspective of the Department of Atomic Energy. India has vast reserves of thorium from which nuclear power can be generated once the technology is successfully developed. The department proposes to achieve a total nuclear power capacity of nearly 10,000 MW by the end of the 11th Plan and work on these would begin during the 10th Five Year Plan period.
Defence Transactions being investigated by Venkataswami Commission
As per its terms of reference, the Justice K Venkataswami Commission of Inquiry which was appointed by Government following the Tehelka tapes revelation is investigating certain transactions relating to Ministry of Defence including SU-30 aircraft, Barak missiles, T-90 S tanks, Rocket Launcher MK-III, besides the Kandla-Bhatinda pipeline transaction pertaining to the Indian Oil Corporation. This information was given by the Defence Minister George Fernandes in a written reply to Shri Balkavi Bairagi in Rajya Sabha today.
Abhayankar appointed as Special Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri R. M. Abhyankar, (IFS: 1968) as Special Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs.
Supreme Court orders to regulate anti-venom Units Thee Supreme Court has given the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experimentation on Animals (CPCSEA) the right to inspect all the five units in the country producing anti venom serum from blood drawn from horses, to ensure that these units follow the protocol as detailed by the CPCSEA.
The three judge bench comprising of Justice B.N. Kirpal, Justice R.C. Lahoti and Justice K.G. Balakrishnan gave this decision in a public interest litigation which had brought to the notice of the Honourable Court that the units extracting serum from horses were using old horses retired by the Army and were violating all the norms with regard to the amount of blood being extracted from the horses and the procedure being followed for the same after the horses had been injected with the venom.
In its judgment of 3rd December, 2001 the Hon’ble Supreme Court directed that the CPCSEA should appoint sub committees which would inspect these units. These sub committees would submit their reports regarding compliance of protocol by these units. If any institution is not following the norms, the committee can direct to improve the conditions or even for shutting down the unit.
National Defence University planned The Group of Ministers which examined the National Security System, has recommended interalia the setting up of a National Defence University (NDU). A committee under the Chairmanship of Shri K Subramanyam has been set up on July 23, 2001 to examine the establishment of an NDU in India. A select sub-group of the committee and officials from the Ministry of Defence undertook visits to the NDUs of USA and China. The committee has to submit its report by the end of this year. Decision will be taken based on the report received, Defence Minister George Fernandes said in a written reply to Rajiv Ranjan Singh ‘Lalan’ and Kapil Sibal in Rajya Sabha today.
India-France agree to intensify Trade and economic cooperation
India and France have agreed to intensify their cooperation to realise the full potential of bilateral trade and investment. Towards its end, trade and industry of both the countries would step up their cooperation through strategic alliances, joint ventures and technical cooperation in areas such as agro-products, telecommunications, energy, transport and information technology. Both governments would extend their fullest cooperation in this regard. This is indicated in the Joint Statement issued at the 11th Session of the Indo-French Joint Committee, which was signed here this evening by Murasoli Maran, Minister of Commerce & Industry, on behalf of the Government of India and Mr. Francois Huwart, Minister of Foreign Trade, on behalf of the French Government.
While noting that bilateral trade and investment have registered a significant growth during the last few years -- with bilateral trade of the order of US $ 1.65 billion and FDI approvals from France worth US $ 1.53 billion -- the Committee underlined that this growth was not commensurate with the actual potential of the two countries in terms of their respective resources and capacities. Both sides discussed the issue of market access and agreed to have periodic bilateral concentrations for minimising trade barriers.
Earlier, addressing the inaugural session, Shri Maran hoped for a positive role by France as a leading member and an important opinion maker in the European Union (EU) on market access issues which are of concern to India. He pointed to the widely held view in the Indian trade & industry that market access for Indian goods and services in the EU was becoming increasingly difficult because of numerous and varying sanitary and phytosanitary, packaging & labelling requirements and trade defence measures in the EU and stressed that such actions impacted on India's trade volume with the entire EU, while urging a higher flexibility in extending better market access for Indian products and services through more transparent and predictable standards. Chief Executive Officers of leading Indian and French companies participated in the deliberations along with senior officials from both sides including Shri Prabir Sengupta, Commerce Secretary Shri Nripendra Misra, Special Secretary and others.
In the Joint Statement, both sides expressed satisfaction with the outcome of the Doha Ministerial Conference and committed themselves to work for the developmental agenda, thus carrying forward the work programme in the WTO. Both sides also reviewed the functioning of bilateral mechanisms in the form of the Joint Working Group in the key sectors of energy; mineral exploration & development; agriculture; information technology; and telecommunications. Possibilities in the cooperation in the areas of urban infrastructure, ports, roads and bio-technology were also discussed. France is the 5th largest export destination for India among the EU countries and is currently 9th in the list of countries from which foreign direct investment (FDI) has been approved since 1991. Further liberalisation of policies have made India attractive destination for doing business and investing.
France keen to assist Indian urban infrastructure projects
France has expressed a keen desire to offer expertise and assistance in modernising India’s water treatment plants, solid waste disposal and management, mass rapid transport system in urban areas and other urban infrastructure projects. The French Minister for Foreign Trade, Mr. Francois Huwart conveyed this to the Minister for Urban Development and Poverty Alleviation, Shri Ananth Kumar when he called on the latter here today. The visiting dignitary was accompanied by a delegation of urban development experts, captains of French industries working in the field of urban development and senior officials.
Identifying the specific areas of cooperation, Shri Kumar said that France could help India in providing expertise in four critical areas, namely, satellite mapping of urban areas so as to identify and plan water networks, urban water supply system, urban transport and solid waste management. Emphasizing the need for evolving a mechanism for resolving outstanding issues and identifying new areas of cooperation between the two countries, Shri Kumar indicated that a Task Force comprising of senior officials and experts from the two countries could be set up for faster clearance of projects.
Ananth Kumar further hoped that the delegation level talks between the two countries would lead to detailed proposals in the areas underlined by the French Minister. These will receive a very favourable consideration from the Indian Government, the Urban Development Minister assured.
Mr. Huwart said that France share a very close relationship with India as French companies have played a significant role in setting up various urban infrastructure projects such as water management, water sanitation, metro rail in cities like Delhi, Bangalore, Nagpur, Kolkatta, Mumbai, Jaipur, Vishakpatnam etc.
India and Kenya sign MoU for Technical Cooperation in Telecom
India and Kenya have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on institutionalising a framework of cooperation and collaboration in the communications sector. The MoU which formally establishes a Joint Working Group on Communications will focus on policy issues, exchanging country relevant technologies and exploring the possibility of collaboration through joint projects in the communications sector. The MoU envisages cooperation between the two countries in consultancy sector through experts for telecommunications, software, computers and related fields. The MoU was signed between Shri Pramod Mahajan, Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Information Technology & Communications and Mr. Musalia Mudavadi, Minister of Communications in the Kenyan Government, here today.
A key feature of the MoU relates to technical cooperation in the provisioning of rural telecommunications using appropriate technologies between the two countries. It is understood that facilitating cooperation in this regard would have an overall impact in furthering the objective of South-South cooperation. Another aspect of the MoU relates to cooperation in the field of manufacturing of equipment based on C-Dot know-how. The Working Group is expected to identify deliverables in communications technology development, product development and facilitating business linkages between the two countries. It is also expected that the Working Group would facilitate development, interaction and exchange of telecom professionals and business partnerships between the two countries.
The signing of the MoU and the establishing of the Joint Working Group is an important bilateral initiative between the two countries. On the one hand it reaffirms the technological prowess of India in the telecommunications sector and on the other hand provides an opportunity to build linkages with the African Continent. The MoU is an attempt to provide a platform that would facilitate affordable and effective communication facilities. The provision of rural telecommunications using appropriate technologies can be considered an encouragement of promoting bilateral initiatives in rural telecommunications.
- Kerala Government to set up Technical University:
- Wanted Adequate toilets in Kerala schools
- Hassan wants to control yellow journalism
- High Court notices to Karunakaran, Jacob and 3 IAS officers