Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal on Sunday said that the beautification and landscaping of historic Bassian Kothi, located near Raikot town in ludhiana district, would begin soon. Badal visited the Bassian Kothi and reviewed the ongoing restoration work of over 200-year-old heritage monument, which is being developed into a memorial in remembrance of late Maharaja Dalip Singh, the last Sikh Maharaja.
The help of experts from Punjab Agricultural University and other Government departments will also be taken for this purpose, Badal said. At Bassian Kothi, Maharaja Dalip Singh was kept in captivity by the British in 1849 prior to his exile. In 2011, the State Government engaged the services of Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) for the restoration work.
Badal said that his Government had given nod for setting up Punjab Institute of Management and Technology (PIMT) at the around seven acre piece of land adjoining to Bassian Kothi. The institute would be set up by Punjab Technical University (PTU). He said that more than Rs five crore have already been spent on this project, which includes a museum, an open air theatre and a recreational area, and a statue of the Maharaja has also been installed there.