Jalandhar (Punjab), Mar 25 (PTI) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and his Delhi counterpart Arvind Kejriwal laid the foundation of Guru Ravidas Bani Adhiyan Centre at Ballan here on Saturday and handed over a cheque of Rs 25 crore to the Dera Sachkhand Ballan chief as the first instalment to start the work.
Mann and Kejriwal paid obeisance at the Dera Sachkhand and sought blessings from its chief Sant Niranjan Dass, according to an official release.
Addressing a gathering here, Mann said this “adhiyan” (study) centre will go a long way in undertaking extensive research and study of the “bani” (teachings) of Guru Ravidas.
He said the centre will also be instrumental in propagating teachings of Guru Ravidas, the doyen of the Bhakti movement, in every nook and corner of the world.
Mann said this land has always propagated the message of universal peace, brotherhood and communal harmony.
“In consonance with the path shown by Dr B R Ambedkar, the state government is according top priority to the education sector along with health, employment and others,” he said.
The chief minister said his government has taken path-breaking initiatives in these sectors.
The state has already heralded a new era in education and health sectors, he said.
Mann said the poor people have been ditched by those who claimed to be their own leaders. He reminded the people that earlier governments had “ruined” the future of poor students by usurping the money meant for the post-matric scholarship scheme.
On the contrary, his government is making concerted efforts for mitigating the woes of the common people, he added.
The chief minister said the Guru Ravidas Bani Adhiyan Kendra Prabandhak Committee, to be headed by Sant Niranjan Dass, will manage the overall affairs of this centre.
The committee will have the secretaries of tourism, welfare of Scheduled Castes and Backward Classes, and finance departments and the deputy commissioner as members.
The committee will decide the further course of action with respect to development of this centre, including procurement of requisite land.
He expressed hope that this centre will act as a lighthouse for further perpetuating the ideology of Guru Ravidas so that future generations can seek inspiration from his teachings. PTI CHS VSD SMN SMN
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