10 yrs on, memorial yet to be built in Muktsar

Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Muktsar, May 6

The proposed Martyrs’ Memorial dedicated to Mai Bhago and 40 Muktas is yet to be constructed even though its foundation stone was laid 10 years ago.

The stone laid by the then SGPC president Jagir Kaur and SAD president Parkash Singh Badal on May 4, 2005 on Tibbi Sahib Road lies broken and the boundary wall is yet to be built.

Both the SGPC chief and the SAD chief have given the people countless assurances to build the memorial, but the work is yet to begin. At present, an expert committee of faculty members of some prestigious universities has been formed.

Sources said earlier the authorities had planned to change the location of the proposed memorial, but the plan was soon scrapped.

Jarnail Singh, Manager, Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, Muktsar, said, “The memorial will be built soon. The committee of experts from Panjab University, Chandigarh; Punjabi University, Patiala; Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar and Sri Guru Granth Sahib World University, Fatehgarh Sahib, is working on the design.”

Other monuments neglected

The other monuments built in the memory of Mai Bhago and 40 Muktas are also neglected. For instance, the wall tiles are missing from the gates built on the entry points of town. Similarly, the Mukt-e-Minar, that has the world’s tallest ‘khanda’ (double-edged sword) and Mai Bhago Park also need to be repaired.