Punjab Newsline | Kartarpur (Jalandhar)
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann on Sunday laid the foundation stone of the Sri Guru Ravidass Ji Bani Adhyayan Centre at Dera Sachkhand Ballan in Jalandhar. The foundation stone ceremony was held as part of the Punjab Government’s year-long celebrations marking the 650th Parkash Purab of Sri Guru Ravidass Ji Maharaj.
Padam Shri Sant Niranjan Dass Ji of Dera Sachkhand Ballan was present at the ceremony along with Sant Pargat Nath Ji of Bal Nath Ashram, Sant Pardeep Dass Ji of Kathar, Sant Teja Singh Ji, Sant Nirmal Dass Ji of Jaure Wale, Sant Lekh Raj Ji and other members of the Sant Samaj.
The Adhyayan Centre will be developed over 10.4 acres at an estimated cost of ₹37 crore. Of this, ₹11 crore has been spent on land and ₹60 lakh on necessary permissions, while the Punjab Government will bear the remaining expenditure required for construction.
The centre will serve as a major institution for the study and research of Sri Guru Ravidass Ji Maharaj’s life, philosophy, sacred Bani and teachings. It will provide children, students and research scholars with a dedicated space to study Guru Ji’s teachings and undertake research aimed at spreading his message across the world.
The planned infrastructure includes a three-storey Administration and Teaching Block, along with separate three-storey boys’ and girls’ hostels. Each hostel will have accommodation for 54 students. A two-storey residential block will also be constructed for teachers and other faculty members.
CM Bhagwant Singh Mann said the centre would become a source of knowledge and inspiration for future generations and play an important role in taking the teachings of Sri Guru Ravidass Ji Maharaj to people across the globe.
He highlighted Guru Ravidass Ji’s message of equality, humanity, compassion and dignity, saying that his teachings raised a strong voice against caste discrimination and social inequality and envisioned an egalitarian society free from discrimination.
The Punjab Government has earmarked ₹100 crore for year-long celebrations of the 650th Parkash Purab. As part of the celebrations, 50 mobile vans are travelling across all 23 districts of Punjab to screen documentaries on Guru Ravidass Ji’s life, philosophy and teachings in around 13,000 villages.
CM Mann said it was a matter of pride to have the opportunity to commemorate the 650th Parkash Purab on a grand scale and stressed that it was a collective responsibility to take Guru Ji’s message of equality and humanity to the world.
Cabinet Ministers Harpal Singh Cheema, Aman Arora, Tarunpreet Singh Sondh, Mohinder Bhagat, Dr Ravjot Singh, Harbhajan Singh ETO and Lal Chand Kataruchak, along with Lok Sabha MP Dr Raj Kumar Chabbewal, MLAs Balkar Singh and Inderjit Kaur Mann and other dignitaries attended the ceremony.
