Wednesday, August 2 2006 12:36 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

New Delhi: The Government today (Aug 2, 2006) assured Rajya Sabha that it will look into the demand to extend the freedom fighters' quota in education to children of daughters of freedom fighters.

"I am in agreement with the demand but we will have to look into procedures for doing so," Home Minister Shivraj Patil said replying to supplementaries during Question Hour.

He was asked why the quota in educational institutions was restricted only to children of sons of freedom fighters.

"Procedure will have to be followed (for extending the quota)," he said.

Patil said benefits given to freedom fighters were perhaps inadequate and the Government was open to looking into any concrete suggestion in this regard.

"Whatever can be done, the Government is willing to do," he said.

He said of the six lakh applications for getting freedom fighter benefits, four lakh were rejected on technical grounds.

"Our objective is to help we provide pension and other benefits to less than two lakh freedom fighters, though these are not the only ones who fought for the freedom of the country. There are many more," he said adding some freedom fighters had not come forward to take government pension.

Pension for freedom fighters has been raised from Rs 4000 to Rs 6000 per month, Patil said and added freedom fighters are decided according to a list of freedom struggles that include the Goa liberation movement and the fight against the Nizam of Hyderabad.