Badal asks Punjabi diaspora to contribute in state's progress

Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today appealed to the Punjabi diaspora to be a partner in the state's development, and asked them to acquaint their children with its rich culture so that they remain connected to their roots.
The Chief Minister said Non-Resident Indians from Punjab could become a partner in the development by contributing in the state government's scheme, 'Mera Pind, Mera Shehar'.
Under the scheme, an NRI contributes 25 per cent of the expenditure while the rest is bore by the Punjab government for the development of a village or an area.
The Chief Minister said the children born abroad must be given education up to 12th standard in the state.

The Punjab government would ensure the best educational facilities to them, Badal said on the concluding day of the two-day Pravasi Punjabi Sammelan here. He said that the state government would also bear the expenditure of their education.
Badal said the Non-Resident Punjabi Sammelan should be made broad-based by having "live" interactions with various groups of businessmen, traders, entrepreneurs, doctors and engineers.

Badal laid stress on the need of constituting committees comprising experts and technocrats from Punjab and countries like Canada, New Zealand and the US for the implementation of various joint ventures to bolster the pace of development.
Referring to the empowerment of women in the state, Badal claimed that SAD-BJP government always championed the cause of giving representation to women, and added the SAD was the first to move a resolution in Lok Sabha for 33 per cent reservation to women.

In his address, Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal said that it was the need of the hour to showcase the progress, growth and development of Punjab to the new generation to further strengthen the emotional connect.
Giving details about the "Online Punjab Mission 2014", Sukhbir said that under it all citizen-centric services would be provided online by this December.