Inspired by Bhagat Singh, Punjab’s youth will become torchbearers of change: CM

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today presided over the Youth Club leadership programme organised by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) here, where he inspired young people to work in the interest of the nation.

In his motivating address, the Chief Minister (CM) urged the youth to take a leading role in nation-building. Addressing young volunteers of the AAP, who had gathered from various districts of Punjab, he said, “The youth are the true strength of the country.” He recalled that freedom fighters like Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Rajguru, Sukhdev and Kartar Singh Sarabha sacrificed their lives for the nation at a very young age. Mann said martyrs remain our role models to this day.

Mann said Shaheed Bhagat Singh and Rajguru could have negotiated with the British and lived longer lives, but they chose unwavering service to the nation instead. “We have lived three times the lifespan of those martyrs,” the CM said, while adding that “So we must now shed all fear and work for the betterment of Punjab and the country.”

He also spoke about Punjab’s ongoing water crisis and the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal dispute. He asserted that Punjab never wanted conflict, but it had repeatedly been dragged into fights. Now, after border disputes, the state was being forced into a war over water.

The CM said he personally visited Nangal Dam to stop the release of excess water. “Punjab will no longer tolerate bullying,” he declared.

However, Bhagwant Mann offered a practical solution to the Centre, suggesting that if the water currently blocked from entering Pakistan was diverted into Punjab’s dams, then the state could can supply it to Haryana through Bhakra. He said the Punjab Government had written six times to the Haryana Government, warning about excessive water usage, but received no serious response. AAP Punjab in-charge Manish Sisodia and several senior leaders also addressed the gathering. — OC