CM lays stone of Rs110-cr Guru Ravidass memorial

Sanjiv Bakshi

Garhshankar, April 3

Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today announced to develop Khuralgarh, a sacred place associated with Guru Ravidass, as a world-class pilgrimage centre.

He laid the foundation stone of Guru Ravidass memorial to be constructed at a cost of Rs110 crore over 12 acres of land. The hallmark of the memorial would be a 151-ft-high “Minar-e-Begampura”.

Badal said it was the duty of the government to preserve the cultural heritage of the state to keep the youngsters aware of its glorious past. He said the memorial would have a congregation hall to accommodate 10,000 pilgrims and a state-of-the art 500-seat auditorium equipped with modern audio-visual aids to showcase the life and works of Guru Ravidass. He gave away cheques of development grant of Rs1 crore each for Khuralgarh and Bassi villages to be developed as model villages.

In his address, Union Minister Vijay Sampla said the entire SC community was indebted to the state government for taking this initiative to perpetuate the life and philosophy of Guru Ravidass. “The community will payback by supporting the alliance in the 2017 Assembly elections,” he said.

Addressing the gathering, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Badal said the government would set up 200 skill centres in rural areas and give skill development training to one lakh youth by the end of this year.