Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday laid the foundation stone of the Guru Ravidas Bani Adhyan Kendra in Dera Sachkhand Ballan.
The centre will come up on around 10 acres of land and will have a three-storey administrative centre, teaching block, separate hostels for boys and girls and staff residences. Students will study Guru Ravidas’s philosophy at the centre and pursue degrees.
Mann said the purpose of the centre was to ensure that the teachings of Guru Ravidas Ji, particularly his message of humanity and equality, continued to reach future generations.
He said there should be no limit to the funds required to spread Guru Ravidas Ji’s message and that the bani (teachings and philosophy) should be studied, researched and passed on from generation to generation.
The foundation stone-laying ceremony comes ahead of the 650th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas Ji in 2027. Mann said although the celebrations would take place next year, preparations had already begun from this year.
The Punjab government has kept a Rs 100-crore budget for the 650th birth anniversary celebrations, Mann said.
He said documentaries based on the teachings and philosophy of Guru Ravidas Ji would be prepared and taken to every household in Punjab. The government would also organise programs in villages, where Guru Sahib’s bani would be displayed through LED screens.
The CM referred to Punjab’s tradition of religious harmony and said people belonging to different religions had lived together, celebrated festivals together and maintained close social ties.
“Punjab is a bouquet of every colour,” Mann said.
He said he did not want Punjab to become London, California or Paris. Instead, his government wanted to bring back ‘Rangla Punjab’ — a progressive Punjab with its own identity.
Mann also appreciated the contribution of Padma Shri Sant Niranjan Dass in the religious field.
Education was another major theme of Mann’s address. The chief minister said that earlier, many children in government schools used to attend school primarily for the mid-day meal. He said his government subsequently brought policies for the welfare of government schools, recruited teachers and sent them for training and exposure programs in Finland, Singapore and IIM Ahmedabad.
Mann cited the performance of government-school students in the NEET examination.
He said that in 2021, only eight students from government schools had cleared NEET, whereas after four years under his government, 882 students had cleared the examination.
The CM said these students belonged to ordinary families and that their children would now have the opportunity to become doctors.
Mann said poverty could not be permanently removed merely by providing food or financial assistance. According to him, the real way to eradicate poverty was to ensure that children received quality education.
Mann targets Opposition over welfare schemes
Mann also targeted the Opposition for criticising his government’s welfare policies, including free electricity and free healthcare.
He said the government had introduced these measures to provide support to ordinary people and to ensure that poorer families could access basic facilities.
Referring to criticism of financial assistance being provided to women, Mann said the money should not be seen as making women dependent or as a substitute for economic progress.
He said he had never claimed that the financial assistance alone would make people rich, describing it instead as a gesture of support from the government.
Taking on the Opposition over its criticism of his welfare policies, Mann said his government had opened its “khazana” (treasury) for the people.
He said that despite the criticism, he would continue with the same approach.
Mann said that if people continued to vote for him, he would open the treasury for them again and again.
He said the government’s resources belonged to the people.
Mann also referred to the well-known phrase “Tera, Tera”, saying it meant that everything belonged to the people.
He contrasted this with what he described as the Opposition’s “Mera, Mera” (mine, mine) approach.
He said this was the difference between his government and the Opposition, adding that his government considered everything in the state treasury to belong to the people.
The Guru Ravidas study centre has been in the pipeline for several years.
In 2021, during the tenure of Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, the centre was announced, and a Rs 25-crore cheque was issued for the project.
After the change of government, the project remained pending. In March 2023, the Punjab government released Rs 25 crore for the centre.
Land was subsequently transferred for the project near Dera Ballan. The centre is now being developed on around 10 acres as an academic institution with teaching, residential and administrative facilities.
The foundation stone at Dera Ballan comes ahead of the 2027 Punjab Assembly elections, while the 650th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas will also be celebrated in 2027.
Dera Sachkhand Ballan has witnessed visits and programs involving senior political leaders in connection with Guru Ravidas Ji.
On February 1, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Dera Ballan during the celebrations of the 649th birth anniversary of Guru Ravidas and named Adampur Airport after the name of Guru Ravidas. Prime Minister Modi has also launched the Sant Ravidas Express from Punjab to Varanasi, linking Punjab with the city associated with Guru Ravidas on July 17.
The BJP also began its programs connected with the forthcoming celebrations, including the sacred Kalash (urns) program from Varanasi on July 29.
