Govt okays events to mark martyrdom day of Guru
The Group of Ministers led by Punjab CM Bhagwant Mann on Monday gave its nod to a series of events to be organised by the government to commemorate the 350th martyrdom day of Guru Teg Bahadur.
The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) will not be part of the state-sponsored events.
Chairing a meeting here at his official residence, the Chief Minister said the state government was duty-bound to organise a series of events to commemorate the day on a massive level. He said that the state government will establish a chair in Patiala’s Punjabi University for research work on the life and philosophy of Sikh Gurus.
“A booklet on the Guru will also be released along with another booklet on his bani (hymns),” he said
The Chief Minister also gave approval to organise an Under-17 football tournament at Anandpur Sahib besides a World Peace Conference and World Interfaith Conference.
Similarly, he said seminars would also be held in various districts as a tribute to Guru Teg Bahadur. He said a major push will be given to infrastructure development at 63 places in Ropar, Mansa, Bathinda, Patiala, Jalandhar, Sangrur, SBS Nagar, Tarn Taran, Fatehgarh Sahib, Barnala, Muktsar, Amritsar and Mohali.
Finance Minister Harpal Cheema told reporters that the SGPC would not be a part of these events.
“But any religious or social organisation that wants to join the events decided by the government was welcome,” he said.
