Punjab government to set up chair at GNDU after Shaheed Bhagat Singh

KHATKAR KALAN/HUSSAINIWALA: Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said a chair will be set up at Guru Nanak Dev University after Shaheed Bhagat Singh. Meanwhile, Mann also paid floral tributes to Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, and Sukhdev at Hussainiwala during which a contingent of Punjab Police gave guard of honour as a mark of respect to the martyrs. Earlier, he was addressing a state level function at Khatkar Kalan to mark Bhagat Singh's 115th birth anniversary. Khatkar Kalan is the ancestral village of the iconic freedom fighter in Shaheed Bhagat Singh (SBS) Nagar district, which was named after him.

The chair will undertake extensive research on the life and philosophy of Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Mann said, adding that the move will help inspire the coming generations to serve the country. Mann also announced the resumption of the ‘Shaheed Bhagat Singh Yuva award.’ He said it will be given to 46 youths every year for their outstanding contribution across fields, said an official release here. He said the award winners will get Rs 51,000 in cash and an appreciation certificate, even as he rued the stopping of the award around seven years back. Mann also exhorted the people to take a vow that they will not leave the country in search of good fortunes.

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“All of us should take a pledge that we will improve the system by living here rather than fleeing in search of greener pastures,” he said, adding that the government is committed to restore the past glory of Punjab. Dreams of Bhagat Singh still remain unfulfilled and corruption, nepotism, and poverty is still rampant, because those who came into power after the British, plundered the country more mercilessly than them, Mann said. He said it vexes him when some people say that the rule of Britishers was better than the present system. This notion needs to be changed, he said.

He urged the people to rise above parochial consideration of caste, communalism, and creed to make India "number one", and said doing so will be a real tribute to Shaheed Bhagat Singh and other freedom fighters who died in the struggle to get the country independence. It is unfortunate that these days some people are questioning the sacrifice of the martyrs, which they don't have any right to, the CM said. He also said that when our national heroes were waging war against the British regime, some traitors were siding with the imperialist forces. “No one remembers such people now.”

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He also announced that the state government will install a 5-D statue of Shaheed Bhagat Singh near the international airport in Mohali. He said the hi-tech statue will inspire the younger generations to serve the country in a more spirited manner. Mann also asked the youth to read more books to update their knowledge and to cope with challenges being faced by the country. While a 23-year-old youth of today demands a motorcycle from his parents, Bhagat Singh, when he was 23, had sought freedom for the country from the British, he said. On the occasion, the CM also felicitated descendants of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Shaheed Sukhdev.

Later at Hussainiwala in Ferozepur, Mann called upon the youths to follow the ideals of Shaheed Bhagat Singh to make Punjab a front-runner state in the country. Mann said, “all of us have to make strenuous efforts to realise the dreams of the martyrs.” Mann said Bhagat Singh was not only an individual but an institution and we must follow his footsteps for the progress of the country. On the occasion, Mann also announced plans to upgrade Shaheed Bhagat Singh State University. He said new courses will be introduced in the university so that more jobs can be created for the youth.