Patiala MP protests move to shift Guru Nanak Dev Open University

Chandigarh: Former Union Minister and the sitting Member Parliament from Patiala Preneet Kaur on Wednesday slammed the Aam Aadmi Party government in Punjab for its move to shift Jagat Guru Nanak Dev Punjab State Open University to Sangrur's Lehra from Patiala.

In a statement, Kaur said, "The Aam Aadmi Party government came into power promising the education revolution for Punjab but till now it has completely failed to do so. Other than renaming already running Smart Schools to 'School of Eminence', the government has not been able to do anything of substance in the education sector."

She said, "Now the government is gearing up to shift the Jagat Guru Nanak Dev Punjab State Open University started by former CM Capt Amarinder Singh and take it to Sangrur's Lehra for their political gains, which is highly condemnable. It is shameful that instead of starting any new educational institute the government is uprooting an already running institute."

Talking about the setting up of the university, the Patiala MP further said when a new university is set up not only does it provide more education opportunities for youngsters, it also creates a lot of employment opportunities and ensures economic growth for the people of neighbouring areas.

"Instead of shifting it to a college in Lehra, the government should work on acquiring land to establish a permanent campus for this university in Patiala as it was intended. By shifting the university to another district, the government will be robbing the people of our Patiala district of an institute of eminence along with many employment opportunities," she added.

The university was established in 2019 as part of the 550th Prakash Purab celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev and the academic session commenced from 2021.