Polyclinic inaugurated at Lodge Phulkian

Tribune News Service

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Patiala, April 15

On the eve of centenary year celebrations of the 

Lodge Phulkian No 94, Patiala, a polyclinic was inaugurated as a 

service project by 

Harcharan Singh Ranauta, OSM, today.

“We are holding centenary celebrations at Lodge Phulkian No 94, Patiala, which is also called as Freemasons Hall. We are also inaugurating a multispecialty polyclinic in the Lodge purely for charitable purpose,” said Dr Bansal.

Lodge Phulkian No. 94, Patiala, was consecrated on April 15, 1916, by the erstwhile Maharaja Bhupindera Singh. Freemasonry in its present form originated in England in year 1717 and came to India in 1729 in Kolkata and gradually spread 

to all parts of the 

country. Numerous eminent personalities in India have been Freemasons, which include Swami Vivekananda, Pandit Moti Lal Nehru, Dr Rajendra Prasad, Jamshedji Tata, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh, Maharaja Yadavindra Singh, Maharaja Duleep Singh, actors Parikshit Sahni and Ashok Kumar and top brass officials of the judiciary.

Freemasonry lodges have presence in 190 countries with a membership of over 50 lakhs. In India, it has over 26,000 members from a cross-section of society. Freemasonry is one of the world’s oldest and largest non-religious, non-political, fraternal and charitable organisations.

“There is also a proposal to set up seven more charitable polyclinic centres in the region, including one each in Chandigarh, Kalka, Hisar, Patiala, Ludhiana, Aligarh and Meerut. These polyclinics will provide quality diagnostic and treatment facilities at highly subsidised rates to the weaker sections of society and the public in general,” said Dr Akash Bansal, Senior Warden, Lodge Phulkian, Free Masons Hall, Patiala.