Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh here today dedicated the second phase of the 'Jang-e-Azadi' memorial to the nation.
He also announced an allocation of Rs 25 crore for the completion of the third phase in the forthcoming budget and sanction of Rs 9.5 crore towards the pending arrears for Phase I construction of the memorial.
The chief minister lauded the initiative as an iconic step towards imbuing the new generations with the spirit of India's independence struggle, as per the official release.
On this occasion, Amarinder also appreciated the former chief minister Parkash Singh Badal for his vision in giving to the state two prestigious projects, including Jang-E-Azadi at Kartarpur and War Heroes Memorial at Amritsar.
The monument depicted 100 years of the struggle of the Punjabis. In the second phase, six galleries were being dedicated to the nation, the release said.
He assured the memorial committee, which comprised noted historian Kirpal Singh, besides J S Grewal, Jaspal Singh, Pritipal Singh Kapur, K L Tuteja and Harish Sharma, of his government's full support for the completion of the next phase of the memorial.
Amarinder directed the memorial committee to allow free entry for the families of freedom fighters, and also asked it to depute tour guides to educate children about the monument's significance.
The chief minister suggested that names of all freedom fighters from Punjab should be included in the inscription of the memorial.
Recalling his post-Tsunami visit to the Andaman and Nicobar islands to undertake rehabilitation work there, Amarinder said that he was really moved on reading the names of the martyrs, including thousands from Punjab, who had made the supreme sacrifice in Port Blair jail.
Stating that this memorial would go a long way in invoking a sense of patriotism amongst the younger generation, he recalled his own maternal grandfather Harcharan Singh Jaijee's close association with the pioneer of 'Praja Mandal' movement Sewa Singh Theekriwala, which continues to inspire him even today.
Earlier, Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) president and Gurdaspur MP Sunil Jakhar urged the chief minister to issue directions to the education department to make visits by school students to the memorial and other such historical places mandatory to imbibe in them a passionate spirit of patriotism.
Freedom fighters did not belong to any political party, nor could they be cast in the narrow confines of caste, colour, creed or religion, said Jakhar, calling upon the people not to fall prey to politicians who used them as vote banks.
Tourism and Cultural Affairs minister Navjot Singh Sidhu said the Jang-E-Azadi memorial would be a bridge to connect the younger generation with their glorious legacy of patriotism.
Describing it as an ideological symbol rather than a brick and mortar structure, he said it epitomised the supreme sacrifices made by our great martyrs and freedom fighters.
Sidhu sought personal intervention of the chief minister in directing the education minister to make mandatory the study of the biographies of India's freedom fighters and martyrs, such as Shaheed-e-Azam Bhagat Singh, Madan Mohan Malviya and Ram Prasad Bismil, in order to rekindle the spirit of nationalism and patriotism amongst youngsters.
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