PU to merge two zones for youth festival in Ludhiana

Panjab University merges co-ed and girls’ college zones for the youth festival to cut costs and ensure fair competition, addressing safety concerns.

The Panjab University has decided to merge two zones — zone A (co-ed and boys’ colleges) and zone B (only girls’ colleges) — in Ludhiana district for the annual youth festival, scheduled to be held from October 22 to October 26, in a bid to curb expenditure and eliminate disparity among players during the contest.

The annual youth festival is scheduled to be held from October 22 to October 26 this year. (HT File)

Previously, events for boys, co-ed, and girls’ colleges were held on different days, with four days allotted to co-ed and boys’ colleges and another four days for girls’ colleges.

Raman Sharma, Panjab University area secretary, explained: “In some other districts where zones are larger, the competition was unfair. For example, in Ludhiana, a team winning from 9 colleges would qualify for inter-zonal competitions, while another team from some other district competing against 25 colleges would be on the same level, which was unfair. This year, PU has extended the festival by a day to accommodate all events.”

He also noted that the merger would not cause a significant difference, as the top two candidates or teams will now be selected for inter-zonals instead of just one.

“After merging zones A and B, the number of participants will significantly increase. Earlier, a maximum of 16 boys’ colleges and 9 girls’ colleges participated separately,” said a teacher from one of the girls’ colleges in the city, on condition of anonymity.

“There are many folk events where voice and pitch play a key role, and in such events, boys might have an upper hand. Also, longer plays can’t be completed in a single day, and if they extend to the next day, it could be unfair since teams might become familiar with the judges, whose identities are usually kept confidential,” she added, expressing concerns over the safety of girl students due to the merger.

The government college for girls will host participants from 28 colleges for the five-day fest this year.

Addressing safety concerns, Suman Lata, principal of the host college, said the merger would reduce costs as the events that used to take eight days will now be completed in five days.

“Police who were previously deployed only on the day of the Bhangra event will now be present on the campus for all five days,” she added.