Jammu, March 16: Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha on Monday said that the nation owes Maharaja Ranbir Singh a profound debt for his reforms, building vibrant culture and forging a robust and thriving Jammu Kashmir.
“Maharaja Ranbir Singh saw Jammu Kashmir as a living entity-not mere land, but a vibrant structure where culture breathed life and reforms channeled energy. For him, its soul resided not just in mountains and rivers, but in intellectual and spiritual values,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
He was speaking at the unveiling ceremony of the bust of Maharaja Ranbir Singh at the Central Sanskrit University, Jammu Kot Bhalwal and renaming of the University’s Jammu Campus as ‘Shri Maharaja Ranbir Singh Campus’.
Sinha said Maharaja Ranbir Singh did not merely rule Jammu Kashmir but he bestowed it a new vision, restructured it, illuminated it with knowledge, adorned it with cultural abundance, and left a legacy for generations which is rich on material, intellectual, and spiritual planes.
“Renaming of Central Sanskrit University's Jammu Campus proves that the consciousness Maharaja Ranbir Singh ignited continues, 150 years on, to guide Jammu and Kashmir's society,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
He observed that the youth must lead the path of principles, building a safer and prosperous Jammu Kashmir.
“Our Youth now bear the duty to embrace his expansive, humane values and contribute to nation-building. As today's Jammu Kashmir embodies Maharaja Ranbir Singh’s foresight, this campus must reflect his ideals,” the Lieutenant Governor said.
Sinha emphasised on building a society technologically potent yet humanely sensitive. He called upon the Youth to enrich not just India but global intellectual and moral consciousness.
“India, driven by human welfare, remains committed to world peace and shared prosperity. The time has come for India to reclaim its place, guiding a challenge-ridden world. We must steadfastly prepare our youth to forge a formidable India- one that shall knit nations in unbreakable unity, kindling in them the noble pursuit of universal peace and human welfare,” he said.
Sinha said that ancient India's journey was never one-sided: one hand held science, the other culture.
“We emphasized personalities blending Brahmagupta's intellect and Buddha's wisdom. This campus must nurture such souls,” he said.
The Lieutenant Governor also assured financial assistance for establishment of Gurukul, Sanskrit Pathshala, or Ved Pathshala in the region.
Dr Karan Singh, former Union Minister; Padma Shri Prof. Vishwamurti Shastri; Prof. Shrinivasa Varakhedi, Vice Chancellor, Central Sanskrit University, Jammu; Dr Kamal Kishor Mishra, Department of Sanskrit University of Calcutta; Prof. R.G. Murali Krishna, Registrar, Central Sanskrit University, Jammu; Prof. Satish Kumar Kapoor, Director, HoDs and faculty of the university, senior officials, prominent citizens and students in large number were present.