With the joint efforts of Member Parliament Rajya Sabha Sanjeev Arora and PAU Vice Chancellor, Dr Satbir Singh Gosal, Museum of Social History of Punjab at PAU has come up in the list of `Museums in Punjab’ on the official website of Department of Tourism & Cultural Affairs Government of Punjab.
As such, this museum has been put on the tourism map for the first time in the history of Punjab. An announcement to this effect was made at an impressive event titled,’ Glorifying the Museum of Social History of Punjab’, held at PAU on the eve of World Tourism Day, here on Tuesday late evening.
In his remarks, Arora applauded the efforts of Dr Gosal for trying to change the face of PAU. “The university represents the face of Ludhiana, therefore the work and infrastructure needed to be showcased in a way that the people worldwide know its worth”, opined Arora.
Acknowledging the precious talent pool provided by the university, Arora expressed his desire to provide strategic and financial help to the extent possible for upgradation of the infrastructure.
Arora was the Chief Guest at the event, which was attended among others by esteemed dignitaries from the government, litterateurs, scientists and nature lovers.
He recalled his previous visit to the museum in the PAU premises a few days ago when he had announced his every possible help for renovation of the museum and also bringing it up on tourism map of the state. In his address, he lauded efforts made by Dr Gosal in this direction.
Arora stressed that there is a need to popularise museum at PAU among the masses, especially among the youth and the children. He suggested that the schools and other educational institutions should be involved and students of these institutions should be encouraged to come and see their old and rich culture.
He also opined that wise publicity about the museum should also be done on social media platforms so that NRIs should be encouraged to visit this site whenever they came to Punjab. Further, Arora opined that museum not only tells us about our old and rich culture but it also brings us in the PAU premises where people could know about the work being done by the university at the ground level. He lauded PAU for its overall achievements in the field of agriculture and also keeping our culture alive.
Padam Shri Surjit Patar was the guest of honour at the event. Among the dignitaries, Commissioner Police, Kaustubh Sharma, ADC (Urban Development) Ludhiana Anita Darshi, ACA GLADA Amrinder Singh Malhi, Secretary RTA Narinder Singh Dhaliwal, Rishi Pal Singh IAS graced the occasion.
In his address, Dr Gosal called the museum as one of its kind in the state with a need for rejuvenation as the university completes six decades of existence. “It carries the commendable vision of the legendary Dr MS Randhawa who incorporated the cultural effect with a brilliant scientific acumen”, the Vice Chancellor remarked. He thanked Sanjeev Arora for contributing financially to revamp the museum.
While welcoming the prestigious guests, Dr Sandeep Bains, Dean Postgraduate Studies, PAU said that in glorifying the social history museum lies the glorification of the great Punjabi heritage and culture. She added that the event was a befitting celebration of the World Tourism Day.
Dr Nirmal Jaura, having been closely associated with the museum as senior public relations officer of PAU shared that it is a matter of pride to have this museum on the tourism website of Punjab. Expressing his thoughts about the museum’s rich legacy, Dr Jaura informed that only two universities in the country have a social history museum; the second being Kurukshetra University.
The event was a commendable effort to give visibility to the museum on the tourism map of Punjab. Padma Shri Surjit Patar and Nature Artist Harpreet Singh Sandhu released a documentary made by the latter, showcasing the exquisite glory of this masterpiece.
A poster and brochure made by Harpreet Sandhu was also released at the occasion. In his remarks, Dr Patar recollected his artistic journey in the university, and added that the institution helps retain the cultural identity of literature. He reminded that the year 2022 is the 300th birth anniversary year of Waris Shah as also the year of travel, beautifully themed as, ‘rethinking tourism’.