Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today exhorted students to achieve academic excellence and contribute in the nation's growth to make India a developed country.Delivering his speech at the 108th convocation of 123 year old Khalsa College, Amritsar in the presence of Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal, Mr. Jaitley motivated the students to proceed with the motto of 'excellence' in their academic career to become a partner in the growth of the nation. Emphasising on the need to impart quality education, Mr. Jaitley said India now had a 35 crore strong middle class and had also witnessed an unprecedented increase in service sector in recent years. He said the service sector was in need of professional and skilled manpower, which could be provided through quality education.
Focusing on the possibilities of religio-cultural tourism in Punjab, Mr. Jaitley said the holy city Amritsar had great potential in this field. He said Punjab had achieved a lot in agriculture, tourism, infrastructure and education and could explore more new avenues of growth. Lauding Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal for maintaining social harmony in the state, the Finance Minister said Mr. Badal had emerged as pillar of social concord in the country. He said Mr. Badal's personality was much taller than the Padma Vibhushan bestowed upon him recently since his contribution for the state as well as country was peerless.
Meanwhile, addressing the students, Punjab Chief Minister Mr. Parkash Singh Badal said in this global competitive era, educational institutions should give stress on quality and purposeful education so that students could compete globally. He said Punjab had introduced the unique concept of meritorious schools for needy students having 80 percent marks in their matriculation. He said that during the last seven years Punjab had created exemplary infrastructure in the education sector and secured No. 1 position in the country. He said the state had also taken the lead by achieving 8 percent growth in the education sector and 20 percent in teaching faculty.Apprising Finance Minister about the present edu-scenario in the state, Mr. Badal said Punjab had setup 11 universities and prestigious institutes in the state including Indian School of Business at Mohali and IIT Ropar. He also requested Finance Minister to visit the state once in a month to look into the development issues. Mr. Badal also announced Rs. 50 lakh discretionary grant for the Khalsa College.
Meanwhile, Mr. Jaitley, Mr. Badal accompanied by Union Food Processing Industries Minister Mrs. Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Mr. Vijay Sampla conferred degrees to the 226 meritorious and pass outs student of Khalsa College.Prominent amongst those present on the occasion Member Parliament Mr. Ranjit Singh Brahmpura, Punjab Revenue Minister Mr. Bikram Singh Majithia, Punjab BJP Chief Mr. Kamal Sharma, Mr. Som Parkash, Mr. Virsa Singh Valtoha and Mr. Amarpal Singh Bonny Ajnala (all Chief Parliamentary Secretaries), Political Advisor to CM Mr. Tikshan Sud, Mr. Satyajit Singh Majithia, Chairman Governing Council, Mr. Rajinder Mohan Singh Chinna Honorary Secretary, Mr. Raj Mohinder Singh Majitha Vice Chancellor and Principal Dr. Mehal Singh.