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UNVEILS STATUE OF RAJIV GANDHI
NEW
DELHI: The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh on 20
August unveiled a statue of the former Prime Minister, Rajiv
Gandhi and released a commemorative postage stamp on the
occasion of the 60th birth anniversary. The day was also
observed as Rajiv Gandhi Renewable Energy Day.
Speaking
after releasing the stamp, Dr. Singh said that observing
the anniversary as "Rajiv Gandhi Akshay Urja Diwas"
spread the message of renewable energy across the length
and breadth of our country."
Pointing
to the overdependence on fossil fuel and the rising oil
prices, he said: "We are living in an age where energy
is emerging as a major constraint on the pace of social
and economic development and we have to think of new ways
and means to grapple with the challenge of energy security."
Rajiv
Statue Unveiled
The
Prime Minister, unveiled the statue of Rajiv Gandhi at the
intersection of Sansad Marg and Talkatora Road, corner of
the Parliament Annexe.
At
the function, the Vice-President, Bhairon Singh Shekhawat,
was the chief guest; the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, Somnath
Chatterjee, presided over the event, and the Chairperson
of the National Advisory Council, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, was
the guest of honour.
The
function was also attended by the Leader of the Opposition,
L.K. Advani, the Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi, B.L. Joshi,
and the Chief Minister of Delhi, Sheila Dixit, besides a
number of Cabinet Ministers and Members of Parliament.
The
statue depicts Rajiv Gandhi wearing a kurta and pyjama and
tossing a garland, indicating his closeness to and excellent
communication with the masses. The sculpture, made by Professor
Latika Katt, has been cast in bronze with a petunia finish.
It is 13.5-foot high and is placed over a pedestal of equal
height.
Sadbhavana
Award Presented
Later,
Dr. Singh presented the Rajiv Gandhi National Sadbhavana
Award to social activists, Swami Agnivesh and Madari Moideen,
and exhorted the people to continue the late leader’s fight
against communalism and religious fundamentalism.
The
Congress president, Smt. Sonia Gandhi, used the opportunity
to stress the need for compassion and sensitivity in politics.
With Rajiv Gandhi not there, she said it was essential that
"we concentrate on realizing his dreams of creating
a new India in the new millennium."
Earlier
in the day, 12,000 school children formed a human chain
around India Gate to celebrate the birth anniversary. q
Tributes
to Rajiv
BAGHPAT:
The Congress workers of Barot offered floral tributes
to Rajiv Gandhi on his 60th birth anniversary here on 20
August. On the occasion the Congressmen distributed sweets
and planted saplings.
Paying
tributes to Rajivji, the Congress leader, Shri Arjun Jain
said that Rajivji was the heartthrob of the people. Shri
Sunil Ruhela exhorted the people to fulfil the dreams of
Rajivji. District Mahila Congress president, Smt. Lata Chaudhary
celebrated the day as the "Urja Diwas".
Health
Camp in Rajiv Gandhi’s Memory
GOPALGANJ:
The Gopalganj District Mahila Congress under its district
president, Smt. Rajkumari Gupta organized a ‘Health Camp’
at the main hospital here on 20 August on the occasion of
Rajiv Gandhi’s birth anniversary. More than 200 women were
treated by Dr. Shayamsundari Devi and were given free medicines.
Others who participated in the camp were Smt. Lalti Devi,
Smt. Subhadra Devi, Smt. Meena Devi, Smt. Kalawati Devi,
Smt. Renuka Devi and Smt. Sheila Devi, all from Mahila Congress.
The work of Smt. Gupta was appreciated by presidents of
different departments.
HYDERABAD:
Free health check-up camp was organized at the Gandhi Bhawan,
Government High School by the Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee
and Hyderabad District Congress Committee here on 20 August
on the occasion of 60th birth anniversary of late Rajiv
Gandhi. About 475 children were given medical treatment.
Minister
for Major Industries, Shri B. Satyanarayana inaugurated
the camp and offered support from the state government.
Hyderabad City Congress Committee general secretary, Shri
Yogesh Raj Srivastav was the camp organizer. The team of
doctors who participated in the camp were Dr. Parthasarathy,
Dr. Jain, Dr. Sobha and Dr. Venugopal Reddy, all from Niloufer
Hospital, Dr. D. Shanker, Dr. Y.V. Rajasekhar Reddy, Dr.
T. Sharath Babu, Dr. Venkat Prasad Reddy and Dr. S. Vijay
Bhaskar. Dr. Sudha Kishore was the camp convenor.
The
APCC plans to screen children in all 1,100 schools in the
twin-cities shortly and by the end of programme children
and their parents will be given appropriate health education
and health care with organized follow-up action in future.
Rajiv
Gandhi Award for Aneena Joseph
NEW
DELHI: A social worker who has helped rehabilitate hundreds
of prisoners has been presented with the Rajiv Gandhi Manav
Seva Award, 2003.
Aneena
Joseph Mathew of Kerala received the award, comprising Rs.
1 lakh, a silver plaque and a citation, from the Minister
of State for Human Resource Development, Smt. Kanti Singh
on 20 August.
The
award recognized Ms. Joseph’s "dedicated and outstanding
services for rehabilitation of wounded and rejected children."
Ms.
Joseph has been working for the welfare to prisoners’ families
and their children by visiting their homes and providing
care and comfort. She runs a home for such children at Pampady
Gram Panchayat in Kerala for the last 15 years.
Book
on Rajiv Gandhi Released
NEW
DELHI:
A book on the former Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, written
by Bharat Jha titled "Bharat Ratna Rajiv Gandhi"
was released here on 16 August by the Minister of State
for Statistics and Planning, Shri Oscar Fernandes.
Speaking
on the occasion, Shri Fernandes said Rajiv Gandhi was a
charismatic leader with humane qualities. In a short span
of five years as Prime Minister, he brought about a lot
of changes in the country in the field of information technology
and telecommunication, Shri Fernandes added.
The
function was organized by the Delhi University Students’
Union and the Bihar Chetna Samiti.
