Educationist Abdul Waheed Khan receives Dayawati Modi Award

New Delhi, Nov 17 (UNI) Eminent educationist Dr Abdul Waheed Khan was today presented the prestigious Dayawati Modi Award for Art, Culture and Education for 2006.

Dr Khan, currently working as UNESCO Assistant Director General for Communication and Information, was honoured for his contribution to education and development through innovative application of information and communication technologies.

External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee presented Dr Khan the award, which carries a cash prize of Rs 2.51 lakh, a silver shield and scroll of honour.

''Power of knowledge will help the downtrodden... India must create systems to develop education systems to include all sections of the society,'' Dr Khan said after accepting the award.

Dr Khan has worked for UNFPA, UNDP, FAO UNESCAP, the World bank and Asian Development Bank. He also served as Vice-Chancellor of the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) from 1998 to 2000. He was the chairman of the Distant Education Council, which is responsible for coordinating all open and distance learning programmes in India.

The previous recipients of the award have been Mother Teresa, Amitabh Bachchan, Pandit Ravi Shanker, Jagjit Singh and Asha Bhosle.

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