INDIAN NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR CO-OPERATION WITH UNESCO & NATIONAL STAFF COLLEGE FOR EDUCATIONAL PLANNERS & ADMINISTRATORS
India has been a member of the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation since its inception in 1946. Article VII of the Constitution of UNESCO requires that "each Member State shall make arrangements as suit its particular conditions for purposes of associating its principal bodies interested in educational, scientific and cultural matters with the work of the Organisation preferably by the formation of a National Commission broadly representative of the Government and such bodies", and further provides that "National Commissions or national cooperating bodies, where they exist, shall act in an advisory capacity to their respective delegations to the General Conference and to their Governments in matters relating to the Organisation and shall function as agencies of liaison in all matters of interest to it". Accordingly, an interim Indian National Commission for Co-operation with UNESCO was set up in 1949, and a permanent Commission was established in 1951. Since then the working of the Commission has been reviewed from time to time and it has again been reconstituted in September, 1974 so as to provide inter alia for only four Sub- Commissions as against five Sub-Commissions earlier, corresponding to the four sectors of UNESCO's activities namely, (1) Education, (2) Natural Sciences, (3) Social Sciences, Humanities and Culture and (4) Communication, and to limit the total number of 'individual' and 'institutional' members to 60 and 40 respectively.
The functions of the Commission are: to promote understanding of the objects and purposes of UNESCO among the people of the Republic of India: to serve as a liaison agency between the Government of India and the institutions concerned with the working for the advancement of education, science and culture; and to advise the Government of India on matters relating
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to UNESCO. During the year under review the Commission actively cooperated with UNESCO in its efforts to promote international understanding and world peace through education, science, culture and communication.
Eighteenth Session of the General Conference of UNESCO The Eighteenth Session of the General Conference of UNESCO was held at Paris from October 17 to November 23, 1974. Prof. S. Nurul Hasan, Minister of Education, Social Welfare and Culture, was the Head, and Shri I. K. Gujral, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, the alternate Head of the Indian delegation. There were four other delegates, five alternate delegates and four advisers in the Delegation.
Apart from discussions and decisions on the Draft Programme and Budget of UNESCO for the next two years, 1975-1976, which had been proposed by the Director-General of the Organization, the Conference also considered several important issues, namely :
(i) to formulate guidelines for the medium Term Plan of UNESCO for the six-year term, 1977-1982,
(ii) ways and means by which UNESCO could contribute, in its field of competence, to the establishment of a new international economic order,
(iii) intensification of UNESCO's role in strengthening universal peace, security and co-operation between countries with different socioeconomic systems, and
(iv) election of the new Director-General.
At the instance of the Government of India, the Conference also considered the question of acute paper and newsprint shortage which is confronting many of the developing countries.
India was one of the countries which had proposed the candidature of Mr. Amadou Mahtar M'Bow, a 53 year old Senegalese who had been UNESCO's Assistant Director-General for Education since 1970 after being a Minister in his own country, as the candidate for the office of the Director-General of UNESCO in succession to Mr. Rene Maheu who held this office for 13 years. Mr. M'Bow was elected as the Director General of UNESCO on 14 November 1974 by a massive majority of 123 votes in favour and one against. In his first policy address, the new Director-General stressed the need for divising new methods of
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work which could be tried to ensure optimum use of scarce resources, simplifying procedures, economising on large meetings where possible. He also stressed his desire for a review of the structure of UNESCO to reduce its rigidity and try to get more decentralization of its powers and activities by giving increased authority and strength to the Regional Offices and Centres.
The policy statement made by the new Director-General is broadly in consonance with the stand which the Government of India has been proposing in the different organs of UNESCO.
In the key-note address delivered on 26 October 1974, Prof. S. Nurul Hasan, Education Minister, stressed the following points.
(i) the problem of maldistribution of natural and human resources in the modern world and the crucial role which UNESCO could play in bringing about a greater harmony land a balance between the developed and the developing worlds;
(ii) moral and ethical problems which arose out of sociological and technological imbalances and the grave dangers posed for the future of mankind; and
(iii) the vital role which non-formal education could play in the essential elements of programmes of educa- tional reconstruction.
India sought and was elected to the office of one of the 15 Vice- Presidents of the General Conference, thereby maintaining its previous record of being fully associated and represented at the policy-making Organ of the General Conference. India also stood for elections to and got elected to the following Councils or the Directing Committees of UNESCO:
(i) The Council of International Bureau of Education,
(ii) The International Co-ordinating Council on Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB),
(iii) The International Council of the International Hy- drological Programme,
(iv) The Steering Committee of the UNISIST, and
(v) The Executive Commitee of the International Com- mission to save the Monuments in Nubia.
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At the instance of the Indian Delegation the General Conference authorised the Director-General of UNESCO to promote co-operation among the organisations within the UN System mainly concerned with the causes and effects of paper shortage and to promote World Action aimed at :
(a) the projection of world needs for paper and news- print for the ensuing decade,
(b) research and development of additional paper re- sources on the basis of alternative raw materials readily available, and
(c) the establishment of world paper bank which would hold or identify stocks of paper available to meet urgent, educational, cultural and communication needs, particularly of developing nations.
Among the other highlights of the Conference were
(i) Election of Dr. (Mrs.) Magda Joboru of Hungary as the first ever woman President of the General, Conference. (This election was particularly significant in the context of the Declaration of 1975 as the International Women's Year by the United Nations),
(ii) Admission of three new Member-States i.e. the Democratic Republic of Korea, San Marino and Guinea Bissau raising the total number of Member-State of UNESCO from 132 to 135,
(iii) Admission of two new Associate Members i.e. Papua Guinea and Namibia,
(iv) Inviting as Observers the representatives of the Palestine Liberation Organization and African Liberation, Movements to participate in the General Conference,
(v) Adoption of a record budget of $ 169,992,000 for the biennium 1975-1976.
For the first time since 1956 when UNESCO held its General Conference in India, the Conference decided to hold the next session of its General Conference away from Paris. By acclamation, it accepted the invitation from the Government of Kenya to hold the 1976 Conference at Nairobi.
The Eleventh Conference of the Commission was held at New Delhi on 3rd and 4th October, 1974. The Commission mainly considered, and gave its recommendations with regard to the
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draft Programme and Budget of UNESCO for the biennium 1975-1976.
In response to the request by the Indian National Commission for Cooperation with UNESCO, five State Governments viz., Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat have set up UNESCO Committees. The State Unesco Committees function as focal centres for coordinating the activities of the State Governments, Departments and Non Governmental Organistations in the fields covered by the programmes of UNESCO.
During the period under report, the participation of about 1000 schools and teacher training institutions continued in a fruitful manner in the Programme of Education for International Understanding. As a part of the Implementation of this project, the Indian National Commission requested all secondary level schools participating in this project to supplement their activities in the programme by setting up UNESCO Clubs in schools. About 150 Schools have established UNESCO Clubs. The Commission has supplied to these Clubs special kits containing information and pictorial materials on UN, Unesco and Human Rights etc. Kits of information materials on UN, UNESCO, life and culture of other countries have been supplied to all the participating institutions. In addition, the Commission has continued to publish and supply the special bulletin-"The World in the Classroom" and other materials to all the participating institutions for the use of Classroom projects in the field of education for international understanding.
The Commission brings out a quarterly "Newsletter" to publicise information about the activities of the Commission and Unesco in India.
The National Commission has been promoting the establishment of UNESCO Clubs in various centres including Universities, libraries and educational and cultural institutions. So far 116 such UNESCO Clubs have been established throughout the country. These clubs undertake activities to disseminate information about the aims and the policies of UNESCO, U.N. etc. and arrange various programmes in the fields of education, science, culture etc. to promote international understanding, cooperation and world peace. The Clubs have been asked to take up action programmes of utility to the communities in which they are located, The Commission has been sending publications, periodicals and other materials received from UNESCO or brought out
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by the Commission itself to all clubs regularly. Special kits of the material are sent to these clubs to enable, them to celebrate U.N. Day and Human Rights Day in a befitting manner. India was elected as one of the two Vice Presidents of the newly established Asian Federation Unesco Clubs and Associations, at a Regional Meeting held in Tokyo in July 1974.
The Indian National Commission for Co-operation with UNESCO continued to get the Hindi and Tamil editions of UNESCO 'Courier' published through the National Book Trust, India, and the Southern Languages Book Trust, Madras, respectively.
The Commission continued to operate the UNESCO International Coupon Scheme designed to assist institutions and individuals working in the fields of education, science, culture, and communication to import books and educational materials from foreign countries on payment in Indian rupees. Coupons worth Rs. 6 lakhs approximately were sold during 1974.
NATIONAL STAFF COLLEGE FOR EDUCATIONAL
PLANNERS AND ADMINISTRATORS Prof. M. V. Mathur relinquished charge of the office of the Director, National Staff College for Educational Planners and Administrators, New Delhi, on 16 April, 1974, consequent on his appointment as Director-General, National Council of Applied Economic Research. Pending the appointment of a full-time Director, Shri Veda Prakasha, Head, Asian Programmes Division in the Staff College has been appointed to look after the current charge of the duties of the Director, in addition to his own duties. Shri Veda Prakasha attended the seminar on 'Education Innovations organised jointly by the Asian Centre of Educational Innovation for Development, Bangkok and the National Institute of Educational Research, Tokyo from 26 August to 5 October 1974.
During the period under report, the National Staff College undertook the following programmes
(i) The work on the first Survey of Educational Administration (as part of the Third All India Survey of Education) continued to make progress.
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(ii) A training programme for two State Education Ser- vice Officers from Uttar Pradesh was organised from 15 to 17 August 1974.
(iii) In collaboration with the Government of Uttar Pra- desh, two one-week training courses from 26 August to 6 September 1974 were organised at Allahabad for Senior Education Officers of that State.
(iv) In collaboration with UNESCO, a four-day National Meet of Experts on Population Dynamics in Education was field from 28 to 31 October 1974.
(v) Under the UNDP programme of fellowships, a special study programme for seven Education Officers from Afghanistan was arranged from 11 November 1974.
(vi) The College brought out a number of publications which included (i) Institute News (3 issues) and (ii) Education Innovations in India-Some Experiments.
The Government of India have decided that the National Staff College will function as a national focal Centre for under- taking educational activities in collaboration with the International Bureau of Education, Geneva. The College is also being developed as a national documentation Centre for educational administration.