To establish a connection between future generations and their roots and glorious legacy of Punjab, Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Friday urged the Punjabi Diaspora to establish NRI schools across the State.
Badal, addressing the second NRI Sangat Darshan Sammelan in Jalandhar, said that through their sheer hard work and dedication, the Punjabi NRIs had proved their mettle across the globe.
“Unfortunately, the younger generations of Punjabi Diaspora are somewhat detached from the land of their forefathers due to which the need of the hour is to reverse this trend by making all out efforts in this direction,” said Badal. He said that this goal could be achieved only if the NRIs take the initiative of opening NRI schools across the State.
“These schools should be built exclusively for the NRI students and should be run by the management comprising of NRIs. The standard of these schools should be at par with the schools being run in foreign countries so that NRI kids could be imparted hi-end school education,” suggested Badal.
He said: “The NRI students must study in these schools for at least five years, so that they could be acquainted with the rich cultural heritage of their parental land.”
listing the State Government’s initiatives to facilitate NRI brethren in the State, he said that the Punjab Government has decided to set up separate NRI cell in every district across the State for facilitating them in getting their routine administrative works done smoothly.
Meanwhile, NRI Sangat Darshan got an overwhelming response with the NRIs hailing from Jalandhar, Kapurthala, Hoshiarpur, Pathankot, Gurdaspur, Tarn Taran and Amritsar districts participating in the event.
The Chief Minister personally interacted with the NRIs in the presence of top brass of the State Government and passed on necessary directions to the officers or the officials for the immediate resolution of their issues. Badal remained at the venue for the entire day to patient hearing to the grievances of hundreds of NRIs.