Wednesday, October 5 2005 15:56 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Paris: With low Education Development Index (EDI) in South Asia, Human Resource Development Minister Arjun Singh today (Oct 5, 2005) sought adequate resources for countries like India to tide over large illiteracy.

"Adequate resources need to be provided for these countries and there is need to revamp Fast Track Initiatives," he said addressing the General Conference of UNESCO in Paris.

Favoring de-segregation of E-9 countries, Singh said while Mexico has high EDI, China, Indonesia, Egypt and Brazil have medium EDI. Only India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nigeria have low EDI, he said.

Referring to India, he said that the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government was firmly committed to 'Education For All' through the ambitious Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.

He expressed satisfaction that drop out rates at the primary stage, particularly among girls, have declined substantially.

Singh said that some of the Centers of Excellence in Basic Sciences in India should be upgraded to Regional Centers of Excellence for the Asia-Pacific Region for the benefit of the whole region.

"It is also proposed that these centers could be networked with world-class labs for advanced research and training," he said.

Addressing the gathering of world leaders, Singh said UNESCO should also help in bringing internationally acclaimed scientists and Nobel laureates to interact with Indian research centers of repute which would help them expand their own horizon of research and also give new direction to research in the country for mutual benefit and uses.

He said India could take the lead in producing material for internet based science teaching and designing a tool kit that could enable any country to convert the programme into local language for distribution to other interested developing countries free of cost.

He observed that India was actively participating in the activities of Inter-Governmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) and Indian Ocean Global Ocean Observation System (IOGOOS).

Singh said that India is setting up its own National Tsunami Warning System at Hyderabad and the key elements of the system are slated to be put in place by March next yearn and the entire national early warning system is targeted to be made operative by September 2007 after necessary testing and stimulation.

"India is uniquely placed in the Indian Ocean and substantial network for this system would also be in the Indian part of the Indian Ocean. A substantial and comprehensive network of in-sites observation system and satellites have been put in place by India in the Indian Ocean," he said.