Doaba College Jalandhar
Doaba College
Jalandhar is one of the leading educational institutions in the Doaba region of
Punjab. It recently celebrated its platinum jubilee after 75 years of its
existence. The management of the college is steered by Chander Mohan, scion of
a famous media and social personality Varinder of the erstwhile Partap group of
newspapers, under the aegis of Arya Shiksha Mandal. Currently, since 2008,
Doaba College is run under the stewardship of Dr. Naresh Kumar Dhiman, a
renowned Sanskrit scholar and an able
educational administrator as Principal.
The UGC has declared Doaba College as “College with Potential for Excellence”
The College has an in-house community radio station called “Raabta” and a
centre for “Remedial classes for SC/ST/OBC students as an affirmative measure
for the empowerment of the weaker sections of the society. Some of the leading
lights, from the cross sections of society, are the proud alumni of the college
which, inter alia, include – Lord Swaraj Paul, business magnate and
parliamentarian in the UK, Yash Chopra, doyen of Indian cinema as a producer
and director of films in Bollywood, Prem Dhumal, politician and former CM of
HP, Anurag Thakur, politician and MP, Manoranjan Kalia, politician and former
Minister in Punjab, Gurpreet Ghuggi, a famous standup comedian and actor and a
number of players of national and international standing.
Principal Dr. Naresh Kumar Dhiman |
Having associated
myself with educational and social activities after my retirement from
diplomatic service, it is a matter of satisfaction for me that I could
establish good contacts and relationship with some of the premier educational
outfits of the area such as Sant Baba Bhag Singh University where I serve on
the Board of Management, D.A.V. College Jalandhar, my alma mater
which invited
me on several occasions to honour and speak, HMV College where I participated
in a panel discussion on Live-in-Relationship, B.D. Arya Girls College where I
gave a talk on ‘India’s Foreign Policy – An Overview”, D.A.V. College Dasuya
where I participated in a seminar on “Gandhian Thought and International
community, Shiv Jyoti School, a leading Higher Secondary school of Jalandhar
honoured me to be the Chief Guest at one of their functions, among others.
Doaba College was on my wish list. My wish was granted on November 7, 2017 when
I was invited to deliver a talk on “India’s Foreign Policy: Challenges and
opportunities” to an enlightened audience of students and teaching faculty. It
was a gratifying experience and indeed an honour to be at the esteemed Doaba
College Jalandhar.
Ambassador Ramesh Chander at DAV College Jalandhar |
·
The talk on the theme “India’s Foreign
Policy: Challenges and Opportunities” was arranged jointly by the Post Graduate
Departments of Political Science and Geography which was very well organized
and attended. Principal Dr. Naresh Kumar Dhiman in his welcome address was too
generous and spoke high of me which humbled me further. He made very candid
observations about the qualities of a diplomat and said good diplomats did not
succumb to the glitter of praise and lavish hospitality and say their mind as
clearly as possible. I found Dr. Dhiman as an astute educational administrator
and a man of learning. Dr. Daljit Singh, HOD of the Geography Department made a
good and informative presentation on “Geo-politics and Foreign Policy”
particularly with relation to India’s borders with Pakistan and China. Prof.
Dr. Rajan Sharma, of the Political Science Department of the college termed
in his well prepared speech as ‘Modification of the Foreign Policy” referring
to the PM Narendra Modi’s intensive involvement in the formulation and
execution of the policy. I have been meeting Dr. Rajan Sharma on various
academic and educational events. He impressed me with is scholarship and
pleasant personality. I as a lead speaker and so called Chief Guest; based my
talk on historical perspective including the sterling role and contribution of
Chankya or Kautilya, evolution under Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi, P.V.
Narasimha Rao, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Manmohan Singh and others and came to the
basic determinants and current elements of India’s foreign policy under PM
Modi’s government. Quoting PM Narendra Modi from his speech at the Raisina
Dialogue, “ आ नो भद्रो : क्रत्वो यन्तु विश्वत” - Let noble
thoughts come to me from all directions, I mentioned about PM Modi’s
initiatives to intensify his interaction with his international counterparts
for integrating India’s foreign policy objectives with that of the world
community. I brought to fore the important aspects and formulations of the
foreign policy as pronounced by PM Modi, saying “Our strategic intent is shaped
by our civilizational ethos of:
यथार्थवाद (realism), सह-अस्तित्व (co-existence), सहयोग (cooperation),तथा सहभागिता (partnership).”
Ambassdor Ramesh Chander |
यथार्थवाद (realism), सह-अस्तित्व (co-existence), सहयोग (cooperation),तथा सहभागिता (partnership).”
Stating that
diplomacy was a continuous process, I reiterated the famous dictum, “There were
no permanent friends; there were no permanent enemies, only permanent interests.”
And said that India’s foreign policy and its executions were fully geared to
meet the challenges and exploit the opportunities in the years to come and
quoted an Urdu couplet of Alhama Iqbal:
जो
है पर्दों में पिन्हा; चश्मे-बीना देख लेती है,
ज़माने
की तबीयत का तकाज़ा देख लेती है
It was followed
by a very interesting and intense interactive session of question and answers
both from the students and the faculty which Principal Dr. Dhiman termed as the
most informative and rewarding exercise. Prof. Balbir Chander, a simple but
down to
earth academic and a teacher of standing by his own right and HOD of Political
Science Department of the college, thanked the speakers and the audience for
making the seminar a grand success and that they look forward to more of such
functions for the benefit of young students. The function was ably conducted by
Prof. Puneet Kalra as Master of Ceremonies. Principal Dr. Naresh Kumar Dhiman
graciously treated us on a piping-hot luncheon delivered from the mess of one
of the college hostels situated in the college complex itself.
Prof. Balbir Chander |
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