The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Name noon meal programme after Kamaraj: Vasan

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Sunday, Oct 24, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Name noon meal programme after Kamaraj: Vasan

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, OCT. 23. A Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) delegation led by its chief, G.K. Vasan, today pleaded with the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, to name the proposed mid-day meal programme for primary school students after K. Kamaraj.

Mr.Vasan told The Hindu here that the delegation had commended the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government's decision to provide a nutritiously cooked mid-day meal for poor children in the country to promote primary education.

It suggested to Dr. Singh that it would be a fitting tribute to Kamaraj, doyen of the noon-meal programme in the State, if the meal programme to be implemented at the national level was named after him, he said.

Manmohan thanked

The TNCC delegation thanked the Prime Minister for the Centre's decision to declare Tamil a classical language. It commended the UPA Government's announcement on implementation of the multicrore Sethusamudram project and setting up a Rs.1,000-crore desalination plant in Chennai to solve the city's drinking water crisis.

The Union Minister of State for Industry and Commerce, E.V.K.S. Elangovan, the All-India Congress Committee secretary, K.B. Krishnamurthy, and former TNCC presidents, K.V. Thangkabalu and Tindivanam K.Ramamurthy, were also present.

TWPPA plea

The Tamil Nadu Women Panchayat Presidents Association (TWPPA) asked the Centre to give directions to ensure devolution of powers and financial resources to the panchayats by the State Governments for the subjects, which fell in the Concurrent List such as education, health, public distribution system, social welfare, agriculture and land reforms.

The president, Ponnikailasam, said a memorandum was submitted to the Prime Minister urging the Government to ensure that the district planning committees be devolved with adequate powers and financial allocation to effectively organise people's plan process and ensure the devolution of powers and financial resources to local Government.

The memorandum pleaded with the Government to take steps to merge the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) with district panchayat governance. It was of the view that the panchayat Government should have the power to prohibit any industry, commercial or institutional establishment that was polluting the common village resources.

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