Preliminary meeting for commemoration of the 150th anniversary of first war of independence

Preliminary meeting for commemoration of the 150th anniversary of first war of independence Saturday, January 27, 2007 A preliminary meeting for the inaugural function commemoration of the 150th Anniversary of First War of Independence was held here today. Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports chaired the meeting. Smt. Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi also attended meeting. The Government of India has decided to organize a national programme at New Delhi on 11th May, 2007 to launch a year long National Celebrations to Commemorate the 150th anniversary of the First War of Independence, 1857; the 75th anniversary of the Martyrdom of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and the 60th Anniversary of India’s Independence. It will also involve a major programme at Meerut where around 30,000 people from all over the country will congregate and march to Delhi. In addition, a large number of youth from various parts of the country will also congregate directly in Delhi on 10th – 11th May, 2007. Considering the very large number of persons who would participate in the functions/programmes are proposed to be organised at different locations in Delhi including the Red Fort, on May 10 & 11, 2007. A National Committee under the chairmanship of the Prime Minister will oversee the commemoration celebrations. A National Implementation Committee (NIC) has also been constituted under the Chairmanship of Shri Arjun Singh, Minister for Human Resource Development to chalk out the programmes and organize the events for the commemoration. The responsibility of the inaugural function has been given to the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports. The Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, an autonomous organisation of the Ministry will be the chief implementing agency for the inaugural function.