Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Sunday flagged off the first batch of headmasters for expert training at the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Ahmedabad.

Interacting with the media after flagging off the batch of headmasters, the Chief Minister said that “today is a red letter day in the history of the state”. He said that while delegations of principals are coming back after receiving training at Singapore, this batch is going to Ahmedabad for upscaling their expertise. Mann said that the single motive is to ensure that students of government schools in the state get quality education so that they can compete with their convent-educated peers across the globe.

The Chief Minister said that “as good coaches produce excellent players, similarly an updated teacher will help groom able students for the coming future”. He said that there is no dearth of funds with the state government for the education sector and every effort will be made to ensure quality education for students.

Mann envisioned that due to the strenuous efforts of the state government, the day is not far away when Punjab will emerge as a hub of quality education across the country.

Taking pot shots at his predecessors, the Chief Minister said that the earlier rulers didn’t like to move among the people after their elevation. However, Mann said that he is attending events daily to ensure the wellbeing of every section of society. He said that his government is duty-bound to ensure the welfare of every section of society and no stone will be left unturned for this noble cause.

ON TEACHERS

The Chief Minister said that after assuming charge, he laid thrust on regularizing the services of 12,710 teachers by overcoming all legal and administrative hiccups. Mann said that the motive was to ensure secure future of teachers as he firmly believes that if the future of teachers is protected then only they can transform the destiny of the students. He said that the genuine problem of every employee will be solved for which the state government is already making all out efforts.

Slamming the opposition for misleading people by making irrational and unjustified comments, the CM said that it is on record that from now onwards the word contractual will be forever eliminated from the nomenclature of teachers. He said that every year, a 5% increment will be given to teachers along with other benefits including holidays. Mann said that the opposition had since long fooled these teachers by playing with their sentiments during their tenures so they have no moral right to say anything over the issue.

ON BOOST TO SPORTS

Replying to another query, the Chief Minister said that in order to restore the pristine glory of the state in the field of sports and to further give boost to sporting activity in the state, the Cabinet also gave nod to the new Sports Policy-2023 focusing on jobs, training, incentives and robust infrastructure for players from village level. He said that sports culture will be reintroduced in the government schools by recruiting physical education teachers so that students can excel in sports.

Mann said that apart from providing robust infrastructure, coaching and facilities to the players, the new sports policy will also lay thrust on providing financial assistance to them for bringing medals in national and international sports events.

The Chief Minister said that the state government has already introduced Industrial Policy, Electric Vehicle Policy, Agriculture policy and now the Sports Policy. He said that the single-point motive is to ensure that the state scripts a new success story in every arena so that a ‘Rangla Punjab’ can be carved out. Mann said that the policies are being framed for every section of society so as to ensure holistic development of the state and prosperity of the people.

ON THE FLOODS

Expressing concern over the damage caused due to floods in the state, the Chief Minister said that the state government will compensate people for the loss of every single penny. Mann said that he had already ordered a special girdawari to ascertain the loss of crops, houses, cattle and others due to heavy rainfall in the state. He said that the officers have been asked to complete the special Girdawari by August 15 so as to fully compensate the people for their loss, if any.

The Chief Minister said that for the first time in the history of the state a policy has been formulated to provide relief to farm labourers for the loss of crops in case of natural calamity. He said that as an amount is released to Deputy Commissioners for relief in case of crop damage due to natural calamity, as per the policy, an additional 10 percent of the above relief amount will be provided to compensate farm labourers.

Mann said that this policy will be effective from May 1, 2023 and all farm labourers’ families, who have no land (except residential plot) or those who have less than one acre of leased/ rented/ cultivated land, will be eligible for it.

ON DRONES

The Chief Minister said that it is a matter of grave concern that drones are now being used for cross border delivery of weapons/heroin/explosives. Mann said that he had already urged the Union government to ensure that registration of drones is made compulsory. He said that like the registration of vehicles this should be also made mandatory so that the menace of drug smuggling through them is checked.

Asked to comment on the statement of former Finance Minister Manpreet Badal, the Chief Minister reminded the BJP leader that acting was his profession which had made him popular amongst the masses. He said that Manpreet had hailed him as a ‘great person’ when he had joined PPP at the peak of his career to serve the state. However, Mann quipped that today when the former Finance Minister has been sent to oblivion by people for his opportunistic stances he is finding faults.

The Chief Minister reiterated that he is well aware of the tantrums of the former minister to drive his own vehicle and pay the toll tax whereas in reality he did nothing for the wellbeing of the masses.

The Chief Minister was accompanied by Education Minister Harjot Bains, MLAs Kulwant Singh and Kuljit Singh Randhawa besides others.​