New Delhi
15 March 2006
The war-torn Afghanistan is working on a plan to introduce a
legislation for village-level administration on the pattern of India's panchayati raj system
of local governance.
The Rehabilitation and Development Ministry of President Hamid Karzai's Government
is making a thorough study of the salient features of the Indian model of local
governance.
The Afghans are particularly interested in the functions and jurisdiction of gram
panchayats in relation to other government departments and division of work between
panchayats and government bureaucracy.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Tuesday told Parliament that Afghanistan
President Hamid Karzai would be visiting India in the near future. "We support
establishment of a sovereign, stable, democratic and progressive" Afghanistan and do
whatever possible to help that country, he observed.
India supports the strengthening of democratic institutions in Afghanistan. New Delhi has
also extended an assistance worth 500 odd million dollars and is also helping in the
construction of a new Parliament building in Kabul.
The Ministry of External Affairs has said the response to the Indian offer of 500
scholarships for the Afghan students for pursuing university education in India has been
"overwhelming".
According to the Afghan Ministry of Higher Education, the response received for the
scholarship scheme has been "revolutionary, never witnessed before in Afghanistan."
Around 12 thousand candidates have registered themselves for the pre-selection English
language proficiency test, including 6,500 candidates in Kabul, 2,500 in Jalalabad, 1,500
in Mazar-e-Sharif, 650 in Herat and 420 in Kandahar. The Indian embassy in Kabul will
select 500 most meritorious students for award of scholarship. The Indian Council for
Cultural Relations will then process the scholarship with the universities for finalising
the admissions.
During his official visit to Afghanistan in August 2005, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan
Singh had announced grant of 500 scholarships for the Afghan students.
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