Theka kitab to protest liquor vend near PAU

Gurvinder Singh

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, October 16

As a novel way to protest the opening of a liquor vend opposite the PAU, former and current students of the varsity, along with members of various NGOs, set up a ‘Theka Kitab’ in front of ‘Theka Sharab’ here today.

The protesters had put up a table ‘Theka Kitab - Desi, Agrezi’ and read there for two hours in the evening to convey that the varsity vicinity is meant for studies and students and not for liquor vends.

Dr Amandeep Bains from RBS Roots, an NGO, said according to the norms, such liquor vends could not be set up even near a school, but this liquor vend was near the well-reputed university across the world.

Though governments had been claiming to wean the youth away from drugs and liqour, such liquor vend was allowed in front of a university having a world ranking, he said. “What would we project to the international visitors and to the students of the university.”

“Girls have to wait for several minutes to catch a bus. Standing near the liquor vend must be pathetic for them. It is height of callousness on the part of the administration to have allowed a liquor vend to crop up near the university gate,” said one of the students of the university.

It ironical that the district administration officials had been visiting the university premises for two weeks due to Saras Mela, but the liquor vend had escaped their attention, Dr Bains said.

Manpreet Singh, a former student of the varsity who joined the protest, said students had an emotional connection with the university, but the liquor vend had hurt them. “While gate no 1 is known for its seeds, gate no 2 would be called the ‘theke wala gate’,” he said. “The liquor vend should not only be removed keeping in view the adverse impact it would have on the students, but also the reputation of the university,” he said.

Members of other organizations, including Ravneet Singh from EcoSikh, Jaspreet Singh from the PAU Young Writers’ Association, Ramit Saxena from Friends for Life, joined the protests.

Bains said they would not complain about this matter. “It is the sad state of affairs in our system that even for the action which should be taken by the authorities on their own is taken only after people complain. So this time, we haven’t complained intentionally,” he said. “We would wait and see for how many days no action is taken against the vend,” he said.