CAPART TO SIGN MOUS WITH CSIR AND
NID TO FURTHER UPDATE ITS RURAL TECHNOLOGY BASKET - KASHIRAM RANA
Shri Kashiram Rana,
Union Minister of Rural Development, told that Council for Advancement
of People’s Action and Rural Technology (CAPART) is in the process
of signing MOUs with Council of Scientific and Industrial Research
(CSIR) and National Institute of Design (NID) to further update
its rural technology basket.
Presiding over General
Body Meeting of CAPART here today, Shri Rana informed that a decision
had also been taken by the last Executive Committee in its meeting
held on 29th January, 2003 to revamp the system of
Facilitation Centres. For this purpose, certain criteria for selection
Facilitation Centres have been envisaged. In addition to the already
existing eight decentralised rural technologies, 15 more technologies
have been identified and decentralised to the Regional Committees.
In order to make
the People’s action Scheme more user-friendly to the NGO sector,
guidelines of the Public Cooperation Scheme have been revised
and printed and are being circulated, Shri Rana added.
Shri Rana highlighted
that CAPART is concentrating more on drought relief with specific
stress on Drought Prone Area Programme (DPAP) areas. Vigorous
efforts are also being made to involve the Support Voluntary Organisations
(SVOs) enabling them to function as mother NGOs. Altogether, approximately
200 Voluntary Organisations (VOs) have been identified as resource
agencies for extending hand holding and imparting assistance to
first timer VOs for project formulation under various schemes
of CAPART. These SVOs would also act as publicity centres for
CAPART.
Shri Rana informed
that CAPART has established a training centre of its own at its
Janakpuri building in New Delhi, which has started functioning
since 18th June 2003. The training requirements of
CAPART officials as well as representatives of VOs, NGOs, Monitors
and Evaluators would be met with at the centre.
Director General,
CAPART informed that the Council proposes to organise 13 national
level Gram Shree Melas, 36 regional level Melas and is also participating
in four International Fairs. This is addition to the regular mega
event of SARAS, which is held during 14 to 27 November every year.
