The Ludhiana district administration, Municipal Corporation Ludhiana and Ludhiana Smart City Limited on Thursday jointly launched 'Youth in Urban Governance' (YUG) programme to give practical exposure and knowledge about civic, health, and Smart city issues to young minds through field visits so that they can contribute in making Ludhiana a better place by giving their out of the box suggestions to improve conditions.
Presiding over the event, MLA Rajinderpal Kaur Chhina, Deputy Commissioner Surabhi Malik and Ludhiana MC Commissioner Dr Shena Aggarwal said that the YUG initiative would enhance the contribution of youth in urban development and would bring a positive social change. They said that students of government and private educational institutes including schools and colleges, would be ferried to the places for learning first-hand about the functioning of solid-waste and sewage treatment plants, biogas plants, Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC), fire-brigade stations.
Besides, the youth will also be taken to Nehru Planetarium, museums, historical and culturally significant places in Ludhiana, villages, industrial tours in Verka, a biofuel generation unit, and other areas to give them exposure. They said that students would also be given first-aid training, nutrition and healthy diet information, and career, legal, anti-drug, cyber, financial literacy and traffic awareness by experts.
They further added that this would also help them in learning science and understanding basics in a better manner through practical seeing the things taught in schools. Besides the youth will also know how administration and MC are undertaking these tasks, and how citizens can perform their responsibilities- save water, stop usage of single use plastic, reduce and recycle waste- thus inculcating civic manners- so that they can contribute as responsible residents of the city.
They expressed hope that the program would leave a great impact on young minds and they would give fresh ideas and suggestions to solve issues concerning Ludhiana. They said that the program would also make them responsible for their civic duties to make clean-green and safer Ludhiana.
They said that this generation could bring revolutionary changes in society with their power of spreading knowledge and ideas for a better place of living. They also added young people who had the power to change the world and they are an asset to any country.
Later, the dignitaries flagged off the buses from district administrative complex. On first day, the students from Government Senior Secondary School, Jawahar Nagar (Boys) visited a sewer treatment plant (STP) Jamalpur (on Tajpur road) and students from Government Senior Secondary School, Gobind Nagar visited the Museum in PAU.
Similarly students from Kundan Vidya Mandir (KVM) school visited Integrated Command and Control Centre (ICCC) of Municipal Corporation (MC) in MC Zone D office, while students from Mount International School visited Nehru Planetarium.
Prominent among those present on the occasion included ADC (Rural Development) Amit Kumar Panchal, District Planning Board Chairman Sharanpal Singh Makkar, AAP District president Harbhupinder Singh Dharaur and others.