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Delhi students to carry ‘Ekta ka Jal’ across India for Sardar Patel’s birth anniversary event
Addressing students and teachers at the event, Sood said the campaign aims to strengthen the spirit of nation-building among the youth.
New Delhi: Education minister Ashish Sood on Saturday launched the campaign ‘Jal Sangam se Jan Sangam – The Festival of Unity’ from the banks of the Yamuna at Sonia Vihar, marking the beginning of a nationwide celebration of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel’s 150th birth anniversary.
Under the initiative, students from Delhi government schools on Saturday collected Yamuna water, termed “ekta ka jal”, and will carry it to 25 culturally significant rivers across the country, symbolising India’s unity. The campaign is part of “Sardar @150,” a year-long programme following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for “Ek Bharat, Shreshtha Bharat.”
Addressing students and teachers at the event, Sood said the campaign aims to strengthen the spirit of nation-building among the youth. “We want every child to say: I have not come just to study, I have come to build the nation. Our students are not merely reading books, they are learning the art of nation-building.”
The inaugural ceremony saw the participation of around 150 volunteers, including students and teachers, who performed Yamuna aarti and took a pledge for river conservation and national unity. The collected water will soon begin its symbolic journey from Delhi to rivers across India, before being brought back to the capital for a grand “jal abhishek” ceremony at Patel Chowk on October 31.
Sood praised Sardar Patel’s historic role in integrating 562 princely states after Independence, and drew parallels with the present government’s leadership, adding that the abrogation of Article 370 reflected the same resolve that once united India’s geography and spirit.
