Tarn Taran Diary: Students of Harike school interact with poet Gurpreet

Well-known poet Gurpreet was introduced to the students of Government Senior Secondary School, Harike recently at a function organised by the Language Department (Bhasha Vibhag), Punjab. It is known in literary circles that in the syllabus of Punjabi subject for Class 11 of Punjab State Education Board (PSEB), Gurpreet‘s poem ‘Harike Pattan’ has been included and the students have been reading it for the last many years. Harike is a land of migratory birds and also has a bird sanctuary spread over an area of 84 km, where in the winter season, migratory birds come from different parts of the world, like South Africa and Siberia etc. It is the land of rivers where the confluence of Beas and Sutlej takes place. It is from here that the river water is released to Rajasthan and also to Pakistan. At present, the land of Harike is crying for help due to damage to crops spread over thousands of acres after the release of excess water from the Pong and Bhakhra dams. A breach occurred in the Sutlej river embankment near Ghadum village, near Harike. It has affected the normal life of farmers and people in 39 villages. Thousands of farmers residing in the surrounding villages have been made homeless and their livestock have been left unattended. Harike is situated on National Highway No. 54 where residents of Rajasthan, Gujarat and other states visit frequently as the place has been developed as a tourist spot too. The literary function was organised at Government Senior Secondary School, Harike, with the efforts of Dr Jagdeep Singh Sandhu, District Language Officer. A number of literary personalities were present besides the students of the school and teachers too. The students who had read the poem ‘Harike Pattan’ were astonished to meet Gurpreet, the writer of the poem. Poet Gurpreet shared his views with the audience saying that Harike Pattan attracted him and motivated him to write the poem. Speaking on the occasion, Ranjit Kaur, school principal, said that before her promotion as the principal, she had taught the poem ‘Harike Pattan’ to the students for years being a Punjabi teacher and that she had never imagined that one day she would share the dais with the poet himself. Dr Inderpreet Singh Dhami, noted litterateur, spoke of the rich cultural heritage of Harike and its fish trade that has spread all over the country.

Former SAD MLA to set up school for special children

Ravinder Singh Brahmpura, former SAD MLA from Khadoor Sahib, in a meeting with JKRDS (Jammu-Kashmir Rural Development Society) leader Raja Ghulam Nabi Wani and National Conference leader Sheikh Dr Mustafa Kamal discussed a strategy to eradicate drugs and motivate the youth to take up sports in the state of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. Brahmpura, who is the Chairman of Punjab Rural Development Society (PRDS), an NGO, said that he is already impressed by the control on drugs in J-K. He said that he has formed the Punjab Rural Development Society (PRDS) in Khadoor Sahib to take up work in this regard. Brahmpura said that in his meeting with Sheikh Dr Mustafa Kamal and Raja Ghulam Nabi Wani, they shared views on how social welfare policies would be implemented Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir from this moment. “Punjab is facing the problem of drugs and now media reports have also brought to light that the hill state has also seen an unprecedented rise in cases of drug abuse. So our NGO, with help from the others, would educate society to stand up against the menace of drugs. We also demanded from the Central and state governments to take strong and necessary steps to curb the supply of drugs,” said Brahmpura. He said that uplifting the lives of poor children, especially girls through his NGO, was also discussed. “Society will try its best to invest its time and resource for skill development among the deserving children. Apart from this, we would work towards the promotion of hockey and other sports to inculcate the spirit of competition, team work and discipline among the players. It will also save the youth from falling into the trap of drug addiction,” said Brahmpura. The leaders also took up the issue of orphans. Brahmpura said that efforts would be made to to accommodate the orphaned children in schools for education and also provide whatever help is required in this regard. Above all, it has been decided to open a school in his constituency Khadoor Sahib, Tarn Taran, where only the ‘special’ children would be educated, said Brahmpura. (Contributed by Gurbaxpuri)