Sanghol to be visited by a President after three decades

Fatehgarh Sahib, Aug 15 (UNI) It was 1975 when the then President of India Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed visited Sanghol -- the ancient and archaeologically rich village.

The then village Sarpanch Varinder Mohan Tejpal still has fond memories of the day when Mr Ahmed sipped tea amidst the villagers and chatted with them for over half an hour.

Recalling the President's visit, Tejpal said Mr Ahmed was on his way to Ludhiana when residents of the village assembled at the entrance of the village and pursuaded his cavalcade to stop.

When the President alighted from his car, the villagers accorded him a warm welcome and a touched Mr Ahmed agreed to their request to have tea with them.

During the tea party, the President shared views with people and intently listened to their problems. ''He left for Ludhiana in a good mood,'' the then Sarpanch claimed.

However, the people expectation that the village, known for its historic legacy, would get a much-needed face-lift, was only partially fulfilled. Though the drains and streets of the villagers were constructed but overall, the development work fell short of their expectations.

Now again, after the gap of 31 years, President of India A P J Abdul Kalam will visit the village on August 17 to inaugurate Sanghol Educational Complex.

Present village Sarpanch Bahadur Singh is excited over the Dr Kalam's visit. He is hopeful that the visionary President would definitely contribute for the development of the village.

The residents of the ancient village, also known as Ucha Pind, or the 'high village', have set out to create a society that fuses rural values and customs with modern ways.

Dr Kalam is scheduled to inaugurate Sanghol Educational Complex, established by the villagers in collaboration with the Shardhanjali Charitable Trust.

''Our endeavour is to make Sanghol a national model. We see the village's future as a fusion of modern techno-living with adherence to ancient Vedic values'', Mr Singh said.

''A feeling prevails that development in Sanghol signals a significant change coming to the entire nation. Sanghol is but the beginning'', he said.

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