University for tribals in MP

By OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

New Delhi, April 20: The foundation stone of the Indira Gandhi National Tribal University in Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh was laid on Saturday by Union minister of human resource development, Arjun Singh. Parliament had earlier passed the Indira Gandhi National Tribal University Act, 2007 for the setting up of this tribal university. Aimed at promoting higher education among country’s tribals, the university will be fully funded by the Centre.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Singh said that this university will go a long way in providing a new direction to the youth in tribal areas and help them meet the challenges of the future through education and learning. Other than its headquarters in Amarkantak, the university will also have regional centres in tribal areas to cater to the higher education needs of the tribal population there. Significantly, the tribal university will also have power to establish at least one school in each of its regional centres as a model school for the rest of the region.

As for admissions, the university will have adequate percentage of seats for those belonging to Scheduled Tribes for both admissions and for employment.

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Japanese temple vandalised with paint

Tokyo, April 20: An ancient Japanese Buddhist temple, which cancelled its role in the protest-marred Olympic torch relay, has been vandalised with white spray paint, the police said on Sunday.

The Zenkoji Temple in Nagano, the host city of the 1998 Winter Olympics, on Friday withdrew from plans to be the start point for the Japanese leg of the relay on April 26 because of China’s crackdown in Tibet.

The global tour of the torch for August’s Beijing Olympics has been dogged by protests since it was lit in Greece last month.

Six white spray paint graffiti patterns were found on pillars and sliding doors at the main sanctuary of the 1,400-year-old temple early on Sunday, a spokesman for the Nagano prefectural the police said.

"We have yet to ascertain if the act was related to the torch relay. It could possibly be a malicious practical joke," he said. The wooden sanctuary, designated as a national treasure by the government, is the main feature of the temple. The police were investigating on suspicion of vandalism and violation of a law for protection of cultural assets. "We really deplore what has happened. We are angry at the damage done to the cultural asset," said Shinsho Wakaomi, the temple’s director of general affairs. (AFP)