"Women occupy a prominent place in the society and they are the axis of purity, goodness and gentleness around which the well being and progress of any society revolves."Delivering a straight from the heart address during the inaugural day of the 3 day 17th All India Poetess Conference (AIPC) here today at the Randhawa auditorium of the Punjab Kala Parishad, the Tourism and Cultural Affairs Minister, Punjab, Mr. Navjot Singh Sidhu said that such occasions symbolize the women power and clearly signifies the trend that sees them taking their deserving and rightful place in the society around the globe.Calling the present occasion a special one in the annals of Punjab, the minister said that it is heartening to see famous poetesses from all around the country lending grace to this prestigious event. He also said that such events act as a unifying force with people from diverse backgrounds gathering at a common place and getting to know about the culture, traditions, art, literature, customs and history of the other states thus strengthening the ideology of unity in diversity.
Throwing light on the culture and history of Punjab, the minister said that the State has always been a shining beacon of secularism, communal harmony and peaceful co-existence so perfectly symbolized during the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He further said that the secular principles so deeply rooted in the soil of Punjab had a profound effect on the literature originating from this great land.Divulging about the steps being taken to give a fillip to the art, literary and cultural activities, Mr. Sidhu announced the approval of Rs. 2.01 crore grant to the Punjab Kala Parishad and Rs. 33 lakh to the each of the 3 academies (Punjab Sahit Academy, Punjab Lalit Kala Academy and Sangeet Natak Academy) functioning under the Punjab Kala Parishad.Speaking on the occasion, the Chairman of the parishad Dr. Surjit Patar said that lingual harmony is the need of the hour as it is a perfect way to achieve synchronization among the vastly different cultures existing in the country. He also reiterated that the Punjab Kala Parishad would leave no stone unturned to ignite the fire of renewed awareness about Punjab's culture and historical heritage at the grassroots level.
In his address, the founder of AIPC Mr. Lari Azad said that the whole country takes inspiration from and salutes the glorious historical, cultural and literary heritage of Punjab which has always shown the path of unity to the nation. He said that renowned poetess Lt Amrita Pritam was one of the founding pillars of AIPC.Earlier, Mr. Navjot Singh Sidhu garlanded the bust of Dr. M.S. Randhawa and then inaugurated the conference by lighting a lamp in the presence of Dr. Surjit Patar, Convenor AIPC Simrat Sumaira, Chairperson AIPC Dr. Vijay Laxmi Kosgi, Satinder Pannu, President Punjabi Sahit Akademi Dr. Sarabjeet Kaur Sohal, General Secretary Punjab Kala Parishad Dr. Lakhwinder Singh Johal. On the occasion, Mr. Sidhu was honoured also.The special highlight of the occasion was the releasing of approximately 20 books in various languages besides the souvenir of the conference which saw Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Gujarati, Bangla, Kashmiri language poetesses marking their attendance apart from the delegates from abroad.Other dignitaries present on the occasion included President Punjabi Jagriti Manch Mr. Satnam Singh Manak, Mrs. Sukhwinder Amrit, Daler Ashna Deo, Krishan Bhanot, Mahinder Geet, Surinder Deol, Dalvir Kaur and Harki Virk.