Gurdaspur (Punjab), Dec 16 (IANS) Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi on Thursday made a slew of historical announcements for the Christian community, including setting up of a Chair at university level for the study of the Bible.
In his address here, the Chief Minister said that Christians would be given due representation in the state government boards.
He said the problem of graveyards would be resolved in the districts where the community has a presence.
"The land for graveyards would be provided where it is not available but the community has a sizeable presence," said Channi, adding a community hall would be constructed in each district in order to enable the community to hold functions there.
Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa on the occasion extended warm greetings to the community and advocated following the teachings of Lord Jesus Christ.
On the occasion, Cabinet Minister Tript Rajinder Singh Bajwa extending his good wishes said that every religion and their spiritual leaders emphasize upon the principles of mutual coexistence and universal brotherhood.
Lauding the Christian community, he said it has contributed a lot in the health and education sectors and the religion has spread throughout the globe due to its selfless nature.
After Upendra Kushwaha and Sanjay Singh, Umesh Thakur, the Siwan district president of the JD-U, jumped into the fray and said that Pandey has a long criminal history. He had also molested a young girl in a train.
The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Friday condemned the Congress government in Punjab for allegedly discriminating against teachers and forcing them to come to the streets, and asked state Education Minister Vijay Inder Singla not to behave in an 'arrogant' and 'dictatorial' manner and resolve the grievances of government school teachers immediately.
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Sukhbir Badal on Thursday demanded a high court monitored probe into the manner in which the Congress government in Punjab was playing with the people's lives by creating an artificial shortage of vaccines by selling vaccine doses at a hefty profit to private hospitals.
The electronic conversation took place as US President Joe Biden announced on Thursday that India will receive Covid vaccines directly from the US stockpile, the White House said.
The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), General M.M. Naravane, reached Kashmir on Wednesday on a two-day visit to review the prevailing security situation in the Union Territory (UT), the army said in a statement.
"There have been several unfounded media reports that have peddled misinformation among the masses regarding this exercise of national importance," a ministry statement said, adding that the total number of Covid vaccine doses administered in the country so far stand at 21,85,46,667.
