Punjabi University Announces New Research Prize Honoring Revolutionary Educator

Scholarly Recognition of India's Freedom Struggle

Punjabi University, Patiala, has officially established the Principal Chhabil Das Yadgari Award. This annual honor targets young researchers dedicated to exploring the revolutionary history of India. The university plans to present the inaugural award on the birth anniversary of the iconic freedom fighter Shaheed Bhagat Singh.

Honoring a Revolutionary Mentor

The award’s namesake, Principal Chhabil Das, served as a teacher to Bhagat Singh at National College Lahore in 1923. This mentorship occurred just before Bhagat Singh committed to full-time revolutionary work with the Hindustan Revolutionary Association in 1924, an organization later restructured into the Hindustan Socialist Republican Association in 1928. Das was an accomplished English professor and a writer known for works such as Why Socialism. Alongside his wife, labor leader and Member of Parliament Sita Devi, Das relocated to Jalandhar following the 1947 partition.

Award Criteria and Benefactors

Funding for the prize stems from an endowment provided by Saba Dewan, a writer and granddaughter of Chhabil Das, and Prof. Chaman Lal, a former head of the Hindi department at Punjabi University. To qualify for the five thousand rupee prize and certificate of merit, candidates must meet specific academic requirements:

• Recipients must be young researchers currently affiliated with Punjabi University Patiala.
• The submission can be a published book, a research paper, or a formal presentation.
• The work must be written in the Punjabi language.
• Subject matter must focus on Bhagat Singh, his revolutionary peers, or broader themes regarding the Indian independence movement.

By focusing on Punjabi-language scholarship, the institution aims to deepen the historical record of the region's contribution to national liberation.

Source: The Hindu — Home