BJP veteran continues her Raksha Bandhan tradition, ties rakhis to BSF personnel

Tribune News Service

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Amritsar, August 19

Continuing her annual Raksha Bandhan tradition, former Punjab Health Minister and BJP veteran from Amritsar, Laxmi Kanta Chawla along with a number of girl students today celebrated the festival by tying rakhi threads on the wrists of BSF jawans at the Attari-Wagah joint check-post here.

Chawla has followed this practice since 1969 and this year, she also included women BSF officers posted at Attari in the celebrations as she put a symbolic red thread around their neck. Children of various schools and colleges presented a cultural programme at the joint check-post to mark the occasion.

“I wait for this festival the entire year. I started this practice 56 years ago, when hardly anywhere in the country, rakhi was tied to soldiers guarding our nation’s frontiers. Today, many people and young students have joined me in this practice. It is also done in Jharkhand, Poonch, Hussainiwala, Ajnala, Khemkaran, Bhikhiwind and Dera Baba Nanak border areas,” she said.

Chawla said that for her, the festival is not just about brother-sister bond, but a symbol of her faith in the country’s soldiers to protect its citizens. As a student, Chawla had closely witnessed the 1965 Indo-Pakistan war. During the 1971 war, she worked in civil defence and looked after the injured soldiers. “I started this tradition when I was a teacher and even during the days of militancy, when only CRPF men were seen in the streets of Amritsar, rakhi was tied to the personnel sitting in various camps on Raksha Bandhan,” she said.

She also tied rakhi to the DGP of Punjab, KPS Gill, during that time.

A senior BSF official said that the festive ritual fills the jawans with a positive spirit. “Chawla ma’am has been coming here to celebrate the festival with jawans for many years and now the border brims with festivities on Raksha Bandhan. I feel that this festival is not just about celebrating the brother-sister bond but also celebrating the love one has for our country and the pledge we take as citizens to protect it against any harm,” he said.

Volunteers of Pratishtha Yuva Sangathan too celebrated this festival by tying rakhis to Border Security Force jawans. Conducted by chief guest SS Chandel, Deputy Inspector General, Amritsar sector, Border Security Force representatives participated in the celebrations. Rehabilitation and Settlement Organisation (RASO) chief Kamaljit Kaur Gill, also joined in celebrating the festival by tying rakhi to BSF jawans at Attari border. Teachers of Holy Heart Presidency School also joined the rakhi-tying team under the guidance of Director Anjana Seth. Said Kamaljit Kaur Gill, “By tying rakhi to our BSF jawan brothers, who come from all corners of the country and are engaged in its defence, we pray for their safety.”