63 villages that Guru Nanak visited allocated ₹1 crore each

CHANDIGARH : As part of the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev, the Punjab government is developing 63 ‘Charan Cho’ villages, which the guru visited, as model villages. Each village has been allocated ₹1 crore; ₹50 lakh coming from the state rural development fund, and the rest coming from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The three towns of Sultanpur Lodhi, Dera Baba Nanak and Batala, associated with the guru, will also get a facelift.

The state tourism department and the SGPC have confirmed that the first Sikh guru visited these villages; Mahan Kosh was also referred to for clarity.

Development of parks, installation of gym equipment, streetlights, development of historic gurdwaras and interlocking tiles on roads are the major works being undertaken. “Overall, 204 works are nearing completion and 30 have been completed,” said Jaskiran Singh, director, department of rural development and panchayat

VIEW FROM THE GROUND

Dr Harish Batish, of Chittanwala village, around 40km from district headquarters of Patiala, said, “Guru Nanak stayed in my village for 17 days. We are excited and happy to be part of anniversary celebrations.”

He added roads had been laid afresh, a stadium had come up and CCTVs had been installed, but expressed disappointment that a park to be named after Guru Nanak had not been built.

“We are developing Sultanpur Lodhi as a smart city for which we have received ₹271 crore. We are also sending across a case for Dera Baba Nanak and Batala to be developed as smart cities,” said local bodies department director Karnesh Sharma.