Jammu, Feb 06: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Thursday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for transforming Jammu, known as the city of temples, into an educational hub, noting that it is the only city in the country to host four premier educational institutions.
LG Sinha said, “Jammu, known as the ‘City of Temples’ since ancient times, has now evolved into a hub of education. It is ‘Shiksha ka Shahar’ (City of Education). No other Indian city like Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai etc has all four premier institutions together. This makes Jammu one of the most important cities in the country,”
He was interacting with youth from the North-Eastern states visiting Jammu as part of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad’s (ABVP) Students’ Experience in Inter-State Living (SEIL) initiative, at the Convention Centre.
The Lieutenant Governor also spoke about the development journey of the North-Eastern states under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He paid tribute to the prominent personalities from these states and recalled their significant contributions to nation-building.
The Lieutenant Governor urged the youth to work collectively to build a strong and developed India. “I want our youth to focus on the needs and aspirations of the weaker and vulnerable sections of society so that they can actively participate in the development process and contribute to all-round progress,” he stated.
He commended the initiative by ABVP, which aims to promote unity and provide opportunities for youth to experience the essence of Unity in Diversity.
“I am extremely proud that the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, as the world’s largest student organization, has been making a significant contribution to strengthening the spirit of unity and brotherhood by eliminating geographical distances and connecting the youth with India’s cultural roots,” said the Lieutenant Governor.
The SEIL program, launched in 1965, has created an emotional bridge between the youth of the North-East and the rest of India. The initiative, with its motto – One Nation, One People, One Culture – is playing a crucial role in realizing the vision of “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat,” enabling youth to experience Unity in Diversity in a tangible way.
A distinctive feature of the SEIL program is that each student stays with a local family, who treats them as family members rather than guests. This arrangement allows students to understand the local culture and lifestyle, while also giving host families an opportunity to experience India’s diverse cultural heritage.
“The foundation of unity amidst diversity is our emotional bond, and I am sure the students have felt this bond during their stay with local families in Jammu. I hope the values of unity and harmony that the youth have learned here will guide them throughout their lives,” said the Lieutenant Governor.
He urged the people to visit the North-East in large numbers to experience its natural beauty and warm hospitality. He further encouraged the visiting youth to become ambassadors of the new Jammu and Kashmir. During the event, students from the North-Eastern states shared their experiences of the SEIL program, and the host families where the delegates stayed were also felicitated by the Lieutenant Governor.
This year, under the SEIL initiative, 30 students from the states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Assam, Tripura, Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh, and Sikkim visited Jammu. Each student had the opportunity to live with a local family and engage in various interactive sessions, cultural programs, and educational visits to understand the region’s rich heritage and traditions.
Yudhvir Sethi and Dr Narinder Singh Raina, Members of the Legislative Assembly; Dr Nagesh Thakur, Special Invitee and Member of the National Executive Council, ABVP; Dr Ajay Sharma, President of ABVP J&K; Sanak Shrivats, Secretary of ABVP J&K; and other ABVP members, along with a large number of youth, were present at the event.
