Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Friday announced to establish a chair at Amritsar’s Guru Nanak Dev University in the name of Bhagat Namdev, or Sant Namdeo, the legendary poet-saint born in Maharashtra who spent 25 years of his life in Ghuman village of Gurdaspur. The chair will seek to propagate the teachings of Bhagat Namdev, legendary exponent of Bhakti movement who lived in 13th-14th century. Badal was speaking on the first day of the three-day 88th Akhil Bhartiya Marathi Sahitya Sammellan here, which has been dedicated to Bhagat Namdev. [related-post] Union Surface Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari, who also attended the inaugural function on Friday, announced to construct a 157-kilometre-long four-lane cemented road from Amritsar to Una in Himachal Pradesh via Mehta, Ghuman, Tanda and Hoshiarpur at a cost of Rs 1800 crore under National Highways Project. NCP chief Sharad Pawar was also present at the function. Badal also announced to set up Baba Namdev Ji Government Degree College over an area of 10 acres at a cost of Rs 18 crore to impart quality education in science and arts to the students of this border region of the state. He promised to upgrade the Government High School for Girls to 10 plus two level and provide 100 per cent potable water supply and sewerage facility to the residents of this village so that this historic village could be showcased as one of the most modern and advanced villages in the country. He extended an invitation to the organizing committee to commemorate this function every year at this village in the memory of Bhagat Namdev. On the occasion, the CM recalled the age-old spiritual ties between the people of Punjab and Maharashtra. He said that the tenth guru of Sikhs, Sri Guru Gobind Singh Ji, breathed his last at Takht Sri Hazur Sahib (Nanded) in Maharashtra. Gadkari, in his address, extended an open invitation to the Punjab government to hold such mega event in Nagpur, his constituency, for the promotion of Punjabi language, literature and art.
