A High level 3 member delegation of World Bank headed by the Country Director Mr. Lim, visited Aligarh District in U.P. to take Stock of Sodic Land Reclamation Project and `Education for all' programme, funded by World Bank in various villages on 28.3.98. The project is being monitored by the Union Ministry of Agriculture.

    The World Bank team had discussions with Mr. K.Chandramouli, Secretary Agriculture U.P., Mr Govindan Nair, Secretary External aided Schemes, Ms. Vrinda Swaroop, Secretary `Education for all programme', Mr. Jahangir, Advisor Education for all U.P. Govt. and Mr. C.B. Paliwal, Managing Director U.P., Bhumi Sudhar Nigam, & Mr. Kishan Singh Atoria, District Magistrate Aligarh regarding the progress of the programme. World Bank Country Director Mr. Lim advised the officials to integrate the "Education for all" programme with the Sodic reclamation project.

    At present 25,800 hectares of land is suffering from sodicity in the district. So far, the U.P. Bhumi Sudhar Nigam has been successful in reclaming 3450 hectares against the target of 7500 hectare. The remaining area will be reclamed by the end of this year.

    Keeping in view the success achieved under this programme, the treatment of 18000 hectares of land is proposed under the second phase of this project by the U.P. Bhumi Nigam out of which 15000 hectares will be reclamed by the year 2005. On completion of this programme, Aligarh District will be free from Sodic area and approximately 7000 families will be  self-reliant. This will not only lead to self employment but will also help educating beneficiary families.

    At present sodic areas are spread over 12.5 lac hectares in the stock. Sodic Land reclamation projects funded by World Bank and European Union are being carried out by the U.P. Bhoomi Sudhar Nigam in 14 Districts in the State. Under this programme 45,000 hectares of land reclamation was planned in 1993-94. More than 34000 hectares land has been successfully treated. Remaining reclamation work will be completed by end of this year.

    The U.P. Bhumi Sudhar Nigam under European Union aided programmes, has reclamed 27675 hectares of land against target of 16075 hectares.

    Keeping in view the success of this programme 1.5 lac hectares area reclamation is planned under II phase of this project beginning in the year 2001.

    Mr. Lim and the World Bank Team visited Khurampur, Bilothi and Bijalpur villages of Aligarh. He expressed happiness over people's participation and Women Self Help Group functioning. He said he was happy with the programmes linked with this project such as dairying, livestock and house based activities carried out by the women of the area.
 
 

    Shri Ramesh Bais was born on 2nd August, 1948 at Raipur, Madhya Pradesh. His father was Late Shri Khom Pal Bais.

    An agriculturist by profession, Shri Bais completed his education in Bhopal and was elected Councillor of the Municipal Corporation, Raipur in 1978. In 1980 he was elected Member of the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly and he was a Member of the Estimates Committee and the Library Committee of the Assembly. In 1989 he was elected to the Ninth Lok Sabha and was a Member of the Public Accounts Committee and Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Steel and Mines. In 1966, he was relected to the 11th Lok Sabha and was elected for the third time, in the 1998 elections, to the 12th Lok Sabha.

    Vice President of the Madhya Pradesh, BJP, Shri Bais has served in this post during the periods 1989-90 and 1994-96. He has been a member of the BJP National Executive since 1993 and of the Working Committee of his party in his home state since 1994. He was appointed Chairman of the Seed and Agricultural Development Corporation of Madhya Pradesh in 1992-93.

    Shri Bais has been actively associated with the health camps, eye camps, rural development programmes and sports events in his constituency. His special interests are woodcrafting, painting,, interior decoration and gardening. Shri Bais is married to Smt. Rambai Bais and has one son and two daughters.
 
 

    Government has announced the names of 23 media persons to be Members of the Press Council of India for a period of three years. The Members are :

    SP1 EDITORS OF INDIAN LANGUAGES NEWSPAPERS

1. Smt. Saroj Verma
2. Shri Pramod Arya
3. Shri Bishambhar Newar

EDITORS OF NEWSPAPERS OTHER THAN INDIAN LANGUAGE NEWSPAPERS

 4. Prof. Raj Baldev
5. Shri Ashok Arya
6. Smt. Manorama Dewan

WORKING JOURNALISTS OTHER THAN EDITORS

7. Shri Haseeb Siddiqui
8. Shri Asim Kumar Mitra
9. Shri R.C. Pandit
10. Shri Maheswar Dayalu Gangwar
11. Shri Akhil Hussain
12. Ms. Sabina Inderjeet
13. Shri S.S. Banyal

OWNERS & MANAGERS OF BIG, MEDIUM AND SMALL NEWSPAPERS

14. Shri Vijay Darda
15. Shri Mammen Mathew
16. Shri Sheetla Singh
17. Shri Gurinder Singh
18. Shri Vishwa Bandhu Gupta
19. Shri Sunil Dang

MANAGERS OF NEWS AGENCIES

20. Shri Virender Mohan

NOMINEES OF UNIVERSITY GRANTS COMMISSION, SAHITYA ACADEMY AND BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA RESPECTIVELY

21. Dr. M.V. Pylee
22. Prof. K. Satchidanandan
23. Shri Om Prakash Sharma

:2: .SP2

    Five more Members are to be nominated by the Speaker, Lok Sabha and Chairman, Rajya Sabha respectively to the 28 Member Press Council.

    The Press Council of India was first set up in 1966 under the Indian Press Council Act, 1965, on the recommendations of the First Press Commission, with the twin object of "preserving the freedom of the Press" and of "maintaining and improving the standards of newspapers and news agencies in India". The 1965 Act was, however, repealed in 1975 and the Press Council was abolished during the emergency. A new Act was enacted in 1978 more or less in the same terms as the Act of 1965 and the Press Council was re-established under it in 1979.

    The Press Council consists of a Chairman and 28 other Members. The Chairman is, by convention, a retired judge of the Supreme Court of India, who is nominated by the Committee consisting of the Chairman of the Council of States (Rajya Sabha), Speaker of the Lok Sabha and a person elected from amongst themselves by the 28 members of the Council. Of the 28 members, thirteen represent the working journalists, of whom, six are editors of newspapers and remaining seven are working journalists other than editors. Six members are from among persons who own or carry on the business of the management of the newspapers; two each representing the big, medium and small newspapers. One member is nominated from among persons who manages news agencies. Three members belong to the fields of education, science, law and literature and culture, of whom, one each is nominated by the University Grants Commission, Bar Council of India and Sahitya Academy.

    The Council, apart from maintaing the standards of & preserving press freedom, can also express its opinion in regard to any bill, legislation, law or matter affecting the press. The Press Council also strives to build up a code of conduct for newspapers, news agencies and journalists for high professional standards.
 
 

    A Pakistani delegation consisting of Prof. Farid Khan of Peshawar University and Dr. Sarifuz Rehman Dar of the Lahore Museum called on Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, Union Minister for Human Resource Development and Science & Technology, here today.

    The Pakistani scholars informed the Minister that there are a number of NGOs working in Pakistan in the field of art and archaeology, such as Pakistan Heritage Society and National Heritage Foundation. These NGOs manned by experienced archaeologists are allowed to excavate ancient sites to augment the efforts of the Government. In recent years, a large number of Hindu temples, images of Hindu gods and ancient coins have come to light in regular excavations conducted in the Indus and Salt Range. This shows that till the 10th century AD, this region was a centre of Hindu shrines.

    Dr. Joshi expressed his great appreciation of this work and explained the delegation the fundamental unity of the culture of the peoples of both India and Pakistan. He told the delegation that his Government will explore possibilities to support efforts in which the NGOs of the two countries undertake to promote scholars and information exchanges through joint seminars and publications. This will be extended to all the SAARC countries as well. He has asked both the Indian as well as the Pakistani scholars who called on him to plan projects jointly for the consideration of his Ministry.
 
 

    The Union Minister for Human Resource Development and Science and Technology Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi, in his capacity as Chairman of Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti has sanctioned a new Kendriya Vidyalaya in the premises of National Hydro Electrical Project at Uri in Jammu and Kashmir State. The school will start functioning from the coming 1998-99 academic session. With this, the total number of Kendriya Vidyalayas has gone up to 874.

    The Minister has also sanctioned three more Navodaya Vidyalayas in the Districts of Pithoragarh (U.P.), Bhagalpur (Bihar) and Changlang (Arunachal Pradesh). This brings the total number of such schools to 397.

    The National Policy on Education, 1986 envisaged establishment of pace-setting schools in various parts of the country named as Navodaya Vidyalayas. The Scheme which started with two experimental schools in 1985-86 has now grown to 397 schools covering as many districts in 30 States/UTs. These are fully residential, co-educational institutions catering to the needs of talented, bright and gifted children predominantly from the rural areas who are denied of good educational opportunities.