India calls for addressing issues of
piracy and re-mix culture

PARIS, Oct 3: India today made a strong plea for a global consensus on reasonable interpretation of "fair use" clauses in copyright laws for greater public good and also wanted the issues of piracy and re-mix culture to be addressed.

"We would urge UNESCO to mobilise an international consensus on reasonable interpretation of `fair use’ clauses in international and copyrights laws which should provide a good balance between private profit and public good and allow the pursuit of research and education", Human Resource Development Minister Murli Manohar Joshi said here.

Another issue which needed to be addressed was to combat piracy and the flourishing re-mix culture which had deleterious effects on creators and producers, he told the 32nd session of the general conference of UNESCO. Observing that India had a very long and enduring relationships with UNESCO which had recently included the Bhimbetka rock shelters in the list of world heritage site, Joshi urged the world body to reconsider the issue of the ceiling of one site per year in view of India’s rich and diverse culture, innumerable monuments and treasures of intangible heritage.

Emphasising that the cultural diversity and religious pluralism was most visible in the region of the Indian Ocean where there were a large number of flourshing religions, he asked UNESCO to consider taking the initiative in promoting regional activities in the Indian Ocean region.

Expressing serious concern over the present digital divide among and within the nations and the possible emergence of knowledge monopolies, Joshi sought to utilise UNESCO’s cooperation in creating a digital science and technology library and information resource to be hosted in India.

This would facilitate open and equitable access to scientific information, journals, technical books and research monographs as well as to make available civilisational knowledge to the users to pursue world class research and augmenting science education in the Asian region, he said.

Turning to India’s progress in spreading education and literacy, Joshi said that the Constitution had been amended to make the "right to education" a justiciable fundamental right for all children in the age group of 6-14 years.

"We are on the threshold of enacting a legislation to implement this right", he said adding that India was fully committed to the "education for all" programme. Earlier speaking at the round table of education ministers for promoting the quality of education, Joshi said that the present situation was one of crises that seemed almost insoluble.

"The most effective way of dealing with these crises rests with the right understanding and practice of ethical and spiritual values along with education that promotes ethical and spiritual values", he said.

He said that mere accumulation of specific skills, academic qualification or experience, without nurturing and developing these attributes of a child’s personality and nature could not yield the results that were expected from education. (PTI)

Oppn to move no-trust motion against Kerala Speaker

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, Oct 3: In a strategic move to cash in on the rift in the Congress, the Marxist-led opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) in Kerala has decided to move a ‘no-confidence motion’ against Speaker Vakkom Purushothaman who, according to it, is ‘adorning the role of a politician.’

The opposition move is seen as an attempt to further widen the rift in the Congress as the Karunakaran faction is at the receiving end of Mr Purushothaman’s recent political remarks.

Briefing newspersons on the decisions of the LDF state committee, which met here last night, front convener Paloli Mohammedkutty said today that Mr Purushothaman should keep the diginity of the post. He misued the position by issuing political statements during the recently held byelection to the Ernakulam Lok Sabha constituency.

"If he wants to remain in active politics, he should step down from the post," he added.

Mr Mohammedkutty said a Speaker should not be a person who remained in active politics. He would have political affiliations, but as long as he held the post, he should remain impartial and keep away from making political statements.

Mr Purushotham is a known supporter of Chief Minister A K Antony who is facing a major crisis within the party. He had openly criticised the ‘I’ faction (headed by Mr Karunakaran) for opposing the candidature of Mr M O John for the Ernakulam election.

He had stated that groupism was the major curse in the Congress and he would work for the unity of Congrees leaders who come out of the clutches of the groupism. His several remarks at a press conference held here recently were interpreted as a direct attack on Mr Karunakaran.

It was in this circumstance that the LDF was trying to get the support of the ‘I’ faction, which enjoys the support of 22 MLAs, for the move against Speaker. In the 140-member assembly, the opposition has 40 MLAs. (UNI)

Educational scheme for disabled by Nov

NEW DELHI, Oct 3: The Central Government has assured the Delhi High Court that it will frame by November a comprehensive educational scheme for the benefit of more than 20 million disabled children in the country.

Additional Solicitor General K K Sud informed a division bench comprising Chief Justice B C Patel and Justice A K Sikri that the Centre had written to various State Governments who have responded well. Now the Union Government would be able to take the required step by the next month, he said.

He also accepted that less than one per cent of the estimated population of disabled children in the country was going to school at present and that even the primary goal of having at least one intergrated school in every district had not been achieved.

On September 24, unhappy with the attitude of various Government departments in passing on responsibilities, the Judges had summoned four Union Secretaries to explain why the Centre was not taking initiatives to frame the scheme.

The Court directed that if by next month the required action was not taken then the Secretary with Human Resource Development, Home, Health and Social Justice Ministries would have to be present in person to explain the delay in this regard.

"It is a sorry State of Affairs that despite the legislation (the persons with disabilities (equal opportunities, protections of rights and full participation) Act) been enacted in 1996, the departments were fighting on who will bear the cost involved and who should frame the scheme," the Judges said.

They expressed their unhappiness over the fact that the Court had taken cognizance of the matter in February and given specific directions in July but nothing had been done.

On July 12, the High Court had directed the Central Government to frame a comprehensive educational scheme for children with disabilities and notify the same as early as possible.

The bench issued the direction and adjourned the matter for September 24 after Mr Sud conceded that the Government had yet not prepared such a scheme and requested two months’ time to frame and notify it.

On February 19, the High Court had issued notices to the Union Human Resource and Development Ministry, the Delhi Government and the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on the petition which in the interim sought revision of the centrally-sponsored Integrated Education for Disabled Children Scheme (IEDC) 1996-97.

The petition filed by NGO ‘social jurist’, through counsel Ashok Agarwal, sought revision of the present IEDC scheme so that it was brought in conformity with the provisions of the persons with disabilities (equal opportunities, protections of rights and full participation) Act.

The petitioner prayed that the Centrally-sponsored scheme should extend not only to the 141 schools run by the State Government but also to all the Government-aided and MCD schools.

Seeking full utilisation of grants earmarked for spending on children with disabilities, the petition alleged that from 1995 to 1998, out of the total admissible grant of Rs 16,24,850, the Delhi Government spent only Rs 6,52,325, though Rs 9,52,325 was allowed to be carried forward, it still remained to be fully utilised.

A comprehensive education scheme was required as according to the Government estimates less than 1.8 per cent of children with disabilities went to schools. Besides, schools not being disabled friendly, there was no scheme to attract such children to schools, the petition said.

The comprehensive education scheme should incorporate allowances for books and stationery, uniform, transport, escort and reader allowance for severely orthopaedically and blind students, and equipment allowance, it added.

Wide publicity was requested for the comprehensive education scheme once it was prepared to ensure that all such students received its benefit. (UNI)

Veteran broadcaster calls for simplifying radio language

NEW DELHI, Oct 3: I owe my popularity to the fact that first I gave my listeners headache by listening to my voice, then sold them various brands of pain-killers, and if this failed, made then smile by popularising different types of tooth-pastes.

Clearly, his sense of humour - just as the quality of his voice -has not been dimmed by the fact that he is now in his early seventies. Veteran broadcaster Ameen Sayani remains a communicator par excellence. Communication means Dil Ki Baat, Dil Se, Dil Tak -talking with your heart and touching emotional chords of millions of listeners, making each of them feel I am talk to him/her.

My greatest virtue was that when I began presenting Binaca Geet Mala over radio Ceylon, I did not know Hindi and so I spoke in simple Hindustani which was a mixture of Hindi and Urdu and was therefore easily understood by people all over the subcontinent, he says.

The broadcaster, who became a household name first through the Binaca Geet Mala on radio ceylon and then the Cibaca Geet Mala on All India Radio’s Vividh Bharati, was speaking earlier this week at a function to mark the launch of the Vani certificates and the release of the Vani handbook prepared for broadcast journalists by air’s staff training institute (programme). Prasar Bharati Chief Executive Officer K S Sarma, member (finance) R. Sundaresan, Deputy Director General (training) K M Anees-ul-Haq and Institute Director H C Verma were also present on the occasion.

Sayani, who said his association with air had begun in 1939 when he was only seven years old, gave three mantras for good broadcasting: The language one speaks should be in keeping with the kind of target audience, it was necessary to build a relationship within the organization since broadcasting was teamwork, and it was important to get proper copyright clearance and pay adequate royalty since music was a very important component component of broadcasting. He said if properly used, radio can be used to properly promote Indian cinema and music. Let creativity not be stifled by rules he said.

Sayani also suggested drawing a clear line between what air FM and the private FM stations should do, so that the public broadcaster and the private sector can complement each other. One important task that radio could perform was to simplify laws for the common man since these were often violated because they were too complicated and couched in difficult language.

It was equally important that the Draconian Service Tax on the broadcast industry which had led to closure of some programmes like his Geet Mala should be abolished. He had also found that few people knew the real meaning of the national anthem or the fact that what the nation has adopted as the national anthem is not the full song.

Mr Sarma said the aim of the new course would be to train persons in correct diction and language and to ensure that they did not fall into the trap of using ‘street language’. He added that the institute would give courses at fees much lower that the fly-by-night courses launched by many private institutions. He said both air and Doordarshan had been in the process of simplifying their language but would never fall to the level of some other channels. He announced that air was training 1,000 air hostesses of Indian Airlines and 40 students had come from Najifabad.

He claimed that air and Doordarshan had always taken the lead in broadcasting and many of the channels being aired today - including NDTV, Aaj Tak, Discovery, Cartoon Network, National Geographic, and others - had first commenced their beaming via Doordarshan. Similarly, air had permitted private FM channels to be launched.

Verma said broadcasting did not only mean what one said, but also how it was said. Voice is the expression of what is going on in the mind of the speaker and he should therefore be able to use his voice to the maximum possible extent to convey his thoughts clearly. The institute would give course in different facets of voice broadcasting and would then receive vani certificates which would enable them to get employment in air or elsewhere. (UNI)

PM inaugurates second section of Delhi metro line

NEW DELHI, Oct 3: Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today said India needed the "determination and will" for faster technological development to cope with the changes taking place at the international level.

"Fast developmets are taking place at global level. There is fierce competition among the nations....Changes are taking place in India, but they have to be accelerated. There is no dearth of money or talent in India but of determination and will," Vajpayee said while flagging-off the second section of Delhi metro line between Trinagar and Tis Hazari.

In December 2002, Vajpayee inaugurated the 8.3 Km Delhi metro between Shahdara and Tis Hazari. With the flagging-off of the second section of DMRTS, the total operation length of the metro from Shahdara to Tiz Hazari would be 12.5 Kms.

Complimenting the metro staff, Delhi Government and DMRTS chairman for completing the second section of the metro within time, Vajpayee said there was no dearth of talent or lack of money but that of ‘determination and will" among the people and said if workers and officers so desire, any project can be completed within time.

He also hoped that the first phase of the metro would be completed by 2005 for the benefit of the over 1.25 crore people in the national capital.

Union Ministers Sahib Singh Verma and Bandaru Dattatreya, Delhi’s Lt Governor Vijai Kapoor, Chief Minister Shiela Dikshit, Metro Chairman Madan Lal Khurana and Delhi’s Transport Minister Ajay Maken were among those present on the occasion.

Appreciating the new technology introduced by Delhi metro to check accidents or collision between trains, Vajpayee said the Delhi metro had come with a new message heralding a new era of technological advancement.

Indirectly referring to the competition between BJP and Congress in Delhi, Vajpayee said political competition will be there but it should not hamper the development of the metropolis.

The Prime Minister said Delhi was already lagging behind in acquiring the metro system. "Normally, a city with a population of 20 lakh needs a metro system. Delhi’s population has already crossed the 1.25 crore mark. Nevertheless, it has started its journey and would reach its final destination," he added.

Khurana, Dixit and Managing Director of DMRTS Sridhara also spoke on the occasion and said the project was the need of the hour and once completed would serve the Delhiites.

Sridharan also announced raising of the speed of the metro upto 80 Kms from the existing 50 Kms per hour and said to avoid collsion and accidents, new technologies have been introduced in trains.

The name of the Trinagar metro station has been changed to Shastri Nagar, keeping in view the demand of local people and as suggested by Delhi Chief Minister Shiela Dixit. (PTI)

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