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‘Fostering intellectual dialogue between two Punjabs’: PU mulls inviting University of Punjab, Lahore for annual fest

Panjab University forms committee to decide on proposal by students’ council.

Punjab panjab university building with green trees and blue skyThe current proposal states that University of Punjab, Lahore should be invited to participate in the annual fest Jhankaar which should serve as a “platform for fostering cross-border harmony, cultural exchange and intellectual dialogue between the two Punjabs”. (Express File Photo)

Panjab University, Chandigarh, has decided to consider the proposal of its students’ council to invite the University of Punjab, Lahore for the annual cultural fest, and has constituted a committee to discuss the matter. The meeting of the committee will be held on January 20.

After India was partitioned in 1947, the University of Punjab, originally established in 1882 in Lahore of undivided Punjab, was also bifurcated. While the original university continued to function in Lahore in west Punjab (Pakistan), the PU Chandigarh was formed for Punjab that exists in India.

The PU Campus Students Council led by its president Anurag Dalal had submitted a proposal to the Vice-Chancellor (V-C) Renu Vig suggesting that the University of Punjab should be invited for the former varsity’s annual cultural fest Jhankaar-2025.

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Considering the proposal, the varsity has constituted an eight-member committee headed by Amit Chauhan, dean, students welfare, which will meet on January 20 to mull over the issue.

The veteran professors and former academicians associated with the university said that they do not remember any previous instances when University of Punjab Lahore representatives might have participated in any such fest at PU Chandigarh, though invitations for some events might have been sent in the past also.

Speaking to The Indian Express, prof Dr Arun Kumar Grover, former V-C, Panjab University, Chandigarh, who served two consecutive terms from 2012 to 2018, said that he had invited the V-Cs of University of Punjab, Lahore and Government College University Lahore (GCUL) in 2013 for a programme to commemorate 150 years of higher education in undivided Punjab, but it never succeeded. “I had also written to the then prime minister of the country and chief minister Punjab to facilitate visas but never received any response,” he added.

The current proposal states that University of Punjab, Lahore should be invited to participate in the annual fest Jhankaar which should serve as a “platform for fostering cross-border harmony, cultural exchange and intellectual dialogue between the two Punjabs”.

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The proposal further includes: performances showcasing rich culture of both Punjabs, celebrating shared heritage, a scholarly dialogue on rich history of Punjab University, its contribution to education in both nations, discussion on benefits of trade through Wagah border, a reflective dialogue on how partition impacted both sides, joint cultural night, exploring linguistic heritage, and fostering friendships between students of both countries.

Karanbir Singh Randhawa, former joint secretary , PUCSC, said that the V-C was “positive” about the Lahore varsity this time.

Divya Goyal is a Principal Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Punjab. Her interest lies in exploring both news and feature stories, with an effort to reflect human interest at the heart of each piece. She writes on gender issues, education, politics, Sikh diaspora, heritage, the Partition among other subjects. She has also extensively covered issues of minority communities in Pakistan and Afghanistan. She also explores the legacy of India's partition and distinct stories from both West and East Punjab. She is a gold medalist from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), Delhi, the most revered government institute for media studies in India, from where she pursued English Journalism (Print). Her research work on “Role of micro-blogging platform Twitter in content generation in newspapers” had won accolades at IIMC. She had started her career in print journalism with Hindustan Times before switching to The Indian Express in 2012. Her investigative report in 2019 on gender disparity while treating women drug addicts in Punjab won her the Laadli Media Award for Gender Sensitivity in 2020. She won another Laadli for her ground report on the struggle of two girls who ride a boat to reach their school in the border village of Punjab.       ... Read More

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