Regular coordination meetings are being held at various levels with all concerned for provision of basic amenities in these flats. Delhi Jal Board is pursuing supply of raw waters from neighbouring states. Meanwhile, interim arrangements have been made through tube wells for water supply.

    As for supply of power, there have been slippages in the targets by Delhi Vidyut Board due to constraints of shortages of power, non-clearance of line routes, non-establishment of sub-stations due to site not being clear, contractual problem and technical material shortage. In Dwarka, water services are to be provided by Delhi Jal Board and electricity by Delhi Vidyut Board.

    Meanwhile, DDA has taken up the planning and construction of bridge and fly over on the approach roads from the Indira Gandhi International Airport site to access Dwarka. These involve acquisition of land, which has already been initiated.

    Earlier, in 1990, while planning Dwarka, DDA had got clearance of Delhi Urban Art Commission, National Airport Authority and Defence authorities.
 
 

    Foreign exchange earning through tourism has also shown positive signs this year. Total earnings during the first quarter of this year was Rs. 3713 crores, 3.1 per cent higher than the corresponding period of previous year. During March 1999 only foreign exchange earnings was Rs. 1146 crore, 3.7 per cent higher than March 1998.
 
 

    Two ICDs at Madurai and Aurangabad are now ready and will be commissioned as soon as clearance from customs is obtained in the future. CONCOR has selected the following locations for setting up new container terminals : Dadri (Noida), Jaipur (Rajsthan), Cossipore Road (Calcutta), Kanpur (UP), Miraj (Maharashtra), Balasore (Orissa), Daulatabad (Aurangabad), Madurai (Tamil Nadu), Rewari (In joint venture with M/s Haryana Warehousing Corporation), Balaabhgarh (Haryana), Vadodara (Gujarat), Jodhpur (Rajasthan), Bharuch (Gujarat). Further, with a view to locating potential container terminals, survey to determine the traffic potential of Bihar and some contiguous West Bengal have been completed by CONCOR. Other terminals under consideration of CONCOR at present are at Bhusawal, Rajkot, Chandigarh and Tuticorin.

    CONCOR undertakes certain concentrated and specialised Intermodal activities in the field of Containerisation such as establishment and management of Container terminals, organising point to point liner train services by innovative marketing, custodianship of Import/export cargo at these terminals in view of heavy state revenue involvement and to function as a Multimodal transport operator. CONCOR is acting as a marketing arm of Indian Railways in retaining as well as diverting traffic from the road to rail thereby increasing the revnue of the railways.
 
 

    As on 31.3.1998, the paid-up capital of the company was Rs.354.77 crore against an authorised capital of Rs.500 crore. FACT recorded a turnover of Rs. 1263.40 crore during 1997-98. The Company made a net profit of Rs. 53.94 crore.

    A total quantity of 12.61 lakh tonnes of fertilizers was sold during 1997-98. The company sold 39,550 tonnes of caprolactam. 6187 tonnes of caprolactam was exported to countries like South Korea, China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

    FACT, India’s first large scale fertilizer unit, was set up in the private sector in 1943 at Udyogamandal, Cochin. In 1960, FACT became a public sector company. By the end of 1963, Government of India had become its major shareholder.

    FACT has grown and diversified into a multi-divisional/multi-functional organisation with interest in manufacture and marketing of fertilizers and Petro-Chemcials, Engineering Consultancy & Design and in fabrication and erection of industrial equipments.
 
 

    In January, 1999 Government of India had issued the Notice Inviting Offers for submission of bids for 48 exploration blocks by Indian and foreign companies under the New Exploration Licensing Policy with the bid closing date of May 18, 1999. Pursuant to this, promotional presentations were held at New Delhi, London, Houston, Calgary, Singapore and Perth which were attended by a total of over 500 participants from about 300 companies. The feedback from these road shows and the interest in viewing and purchase of data for the blocks on offer have been encouraging. The terms of NELP and the blocks currently on offer have evoked positive response from companies despite the low price regime that prevailed for much of the time since the announcement of bids.

    Government have been receiving requests from interested companies for extension in the bid closing date to enable them to carry out more comprehensive study of data, to obtain internal approvals and to secure tie-ups with other interested companies. These requests have been considered by the Government of India in a spirit of appreciation of the contraints faced by the companies to enable them to put forward their best offers under the NELP.

    It may be noted that this is a one time extension being given to accommodate the genuine concerns of companies and no further extension will be given. Government hopes that the investor companies would avail of the opportunity to bid for a large number of prospective exploration blocks on offer under the highly attractive NELP regime.
 
 

    The objectives of the GOI-UNICEF programme of Cooperation are to accelerate the realization of universal child rights by ensuring that society will respect, protect and find ways to fulfill obligations to children and to ensure that women’s right’s are progressively met with improvements in the position of girls and women in society and to strengthen the capacities of communities to analyze their situation, set priorities and monitor activities and outcomes at the local level.

    Three complex goals : reduction in low birth weight rate, reduction in maternal mortality rate and reduction in child labour will be measured to track progress in terms of the above overall objectives and the impact of the UNICEF-GOI programme cooperation. These goals have been identified mainly because sustained progress in each of the sectoral goals will have a major influence in achieving these complex outcomes of child survival, protection, participation and development.

    The agreement gives special attention to develop time bound, cost-effective practical actions to reduce disparities in achievements of children across regions, gender, class and communities. Special attention will be given to the population in the North-eastern states, Jammu and Kashmir and other smaller states who have not received adequate attention in the last two UNICEF-GOI programmes of cooperation. Narrowing the gender disparities and affirmative action in favour of girl child will be special areas of focus in all programmes plan, mobilize collective community action in support of programmes for children, encouraging leadership by women and youth focusing on extending full support to the fulfillment of rights that are now on the public agenda (such as ensuring the right to primary education, the right to health, abolition of child labour) as well as bringing less visible issues of children (such as malnutrition, child abuse, HIV/AIDS, sexual exploitation, and violence against women) into the realm of policy decision-making, enhance the quality of public services as well as their accountability to the community and strengthen advocacy efforts to create new societal norms that respect the rights of children.

    He UNICEF Executive Board has approved a total not exceeding the equivalent of US $120 million from UNICEF General Resources to support the programme activities described in this Plan of Operations for the period January 1999 to December 2002. The Executive Board has also authorised the Executive Director to seek special purpose contributions for this Plan of Operations to an amount equivalent to US $ 180 million.
 
 

    In order to derive the best possible benefits from the available water, Central Water Commission is keeping in touch with the Dept. of Agriculture and Co-operation, Ministry of Agriculture and providing information on the weekly storage position to the Crop Weather Watch Group for evolving suitable crop strategies and also apprising the situation to various Departments and Ministries involved in water resources planning.

    Out of these 64 reservoirs, there are presently only 23 reservoirs where this year’s capacity is less by 20% or more than the average of previous years. However, out of the 24 reservoirs with significant hydro-potential, there are only 9 reservoirs which have storage build up less than average of previous years.

    The basin-wise storage position is also better than average of previous years in the Ganga, Tapi, Mahi, Krishna,Godavari, Cauvery and neighbouring east-flowing rivers. In case of Sabarmati and the rivers of Kutch, the basin-wise storage position is less by twenty per cent of previous years. It was less than 20% of average of previous years in Indus, Narmada, Mahanandi & neighbouring east-flowing rivers and west-flowing rivers of South.
 
 

2.     The Chief Election Commissioner of India, welcomed the participants, and noted that in the recent past, the Commission, in keeping with good democratic practices, has invariably held such meetings, before finalizing its programme for the elections, in order to benefit, from the views of the political parties, and to know their specific concerns. The CEC remarked that the march of events had unfortunately forced upon the country and the Commission, a national election, during the most difficult six months of the year. From 1952, all elections, barring the second stage of polling in 1991, had been held in the months of November to April, or at best May, and the Commission is now faced, with the difficult task of choosing timings, within the given six months. The election operation requires massive and meticulous staff planning; the organisation of 40 lakhs of polling staff; the procurement of and complex movement planning of lakhs of Central Police Forces; the problems of being in the midst of a comprehensive electoral revision; the need for political parties to have a little time to do their own planning, and the mobilization and logistics of procuring paper, financial allotments of a large order in the Center and State budgets, and a host of other minor issues. In fixing the schedule, the Commission also has to keep in mind, the State Assembly Elections to 9 States, across the country, some of them India’s largest. The CEC sought the considered views of the political parties, on all these, and other relevant issues. He also appealed to them, to assist the Commission, in having a peaceful, fair, free and transparent poll, so that the country’s established reputation, and good name is further enhanced.

3.     All parties present made extensive observations and comments. Many had already called on the Commissioners, with written views, brought by their delegations. The Bharatiya Janata Party, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Pattali Makkal Katchi, Biju Janata Dal, Telugu Desam, Shiv Sena, Samata Party, Shiromani Akali Dal, J&K National Conference, Haryana Vikas Party, All India Trinamul Congress and others spoke in favour of early elections, if possible in June. The others, such as, the Indian National Congress, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India(Marxist), Bahujan Samaj Party, Janata Dal, Asom Gana Parishad, Kerala Congress, Kerala Congress (M), Muslim League, Manipur People's Party, Janata Party, United Minorities Front, Assam, United Democratic Party, Samajwadi Janata Party (R), Tamil Maanila Congress (Moopanar), Arunachal Congress, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, Republican Party of India, Indian Congress (Socialist), Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Himachal Vikas Congress, All India Forward Bloc, Revolutionary Socialist Party and others opposed this and proposed elections, later in the year and after the electoral rolls are completed. The Commission noted that all State parties in the North-East unanimously opted for the Lok Sabha elections in the end of September or 1^st week of October in view of the weather conditions.

4.    As regards the combining or separating the State Elections from the Parliamentary ones, Indian National Congress, Communist Party of India, Sikkim Democratic Front, Shiromani Akali Dal, Manipur People’s Party, Kerala Congress, United Goans Democratic Party, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, NTR Telugu Desam Party(Laxmi Parvathi), Federal Party of Manipur, Biju Janata Dal, Himachal Vikas Congress and others spoke in favour of holding simultaneous elections, whereas Bharatiya Janata Party, Shiv Sena and Telugu Desam Party opposed this. The discussions were cordial, and in the best traditions of Indian democracy.
5.     The Commission has recorded all the proceedings, and will give every view point its full attention. It is conscious, that it is faced, with a difficult decision, but it is confident that it will carry out, its constitutional duty, of fixing the best possible and most appropriate time table, under the given circumstances, in order to ensure, that its prime duty of completing the task, in good time, and in a fair and efficient manner, is carried out. The Commission will duly consider the views of the parties, along with its own analysis of all the other listed issues, and will indicate to the country, its proposed line of action, at an early date. The Commission wishes to thank all the parties, who responded at such short notice, and who once again demonstrated the cooperative and harmonious working of the Indian political system.
 
 
 

    Shri Kamal Pande, IAS (UP), as Home Secretary vice Shri B.P. Singh;

    Shri B.P. Singh, IAS (Assam), Secretary, Health vice Shri K.K. Baksi, IAS (UP);

    Shri K.K. Baksi, IAS (UP), Adviser, Planning Commission;

    Mrs. Asha Das, IAS (MP) Secretary, Department of Official Language as Secretary, Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment vice Shri D.K. Manavalan;

    Shri D.K. Manavalan, IAS (WB) as Secretary, Department of Youth Affairs & Sports vice Shri Bhaskar Barua;

    Shri Bhaskar Barua, IAS (Assam – Meghalaya) as Secretary, Department of Agriculture & Cooperatives vice Shri Kamal Pande;

    Shri M.K. Kaw, IAS (HP), as Secretary, Department of Education vice Shri P.R. Das Gupta;

    Shri P.R. Das Gupta, IAS (Maharashtra) as Adviser, Planning Commission vice Shri M.K. Kaw;

    Shri N.N. Mookerjee, IAS (Assam) on return from long leave to become Secretary, Ministry of Non-Conventional, Energy Sources vice Shri C.R. Kamalnathan, IAS (AP) who goes back to his cadre; and

    Shri Satish Chandra, (IFS:65) now Chairman, Joint Intelligence Committee, Cabinet Secretariat as Secretary of the National Security Council Secretariat.