ISLAMABAD, Feb 18: The government has earmarked Rs17.1 million in the 2003-04 budget for Human Rights Mass Awareness and Education Project, the Senate was told here on Wednesday.

In a written reply to a question, Minister of State for Law Mohammad Raza Hayat Hiraj said out of Rs17.1 million, Rs16.3 million came in the shape of a foreign grant while Rs702,000 was government's own share.

The minister said Rs13.2 million had so far been spent during the current financial year from donors' grant on the activities as per the feasibilities of the project.

The amount was spent on activities that included mass awareness through media by Law, Justice and Human Rights Division and local training through NIPA, Civil Services Academy, Pakistan Administrative Staff College and Secretariat Training Institute. Similarly, the amount was also being utilized for curriculum development by the education ministry and the Higher Education Commission (HEC).

These activities would be completed by March 31 and winding up would take place by end of June. About 90 per cent progress has been achieved while the remaining will be spent on convention on the adoption of human rights standards in Pakistan and billboards/slogans outside police stations throughout the country.

To another question, Education Minister Zobaida Jalal informed the house that 1,215 scholarships of different levels were offered to Pakistani students by donor countries in the last eight years.

She said 170 scholarships, under the cultural exchange scholarship programme, could not be utilized because these were partially funded and due to financial constraints the Pakistani government suspended subsidy from 1998.

However, the subsidy has now been restored from April 1, 2003, which would be facilitated in future. The donor countries, which offered scholarships, include China, Turkey, Russia, Japan, Mexico, Slovak Republic, Czech Republic, Greece, Poland, Egypt, Spain, Jordan, Tunisia, Romania, Syria, UK, Canada, Malaysia, Brunei and New Zealand.