Punjab educationist nominated to Rajya Sabha

New Delhi: Satnam Singh Sandhu, Chancellor of the private Chandigarh University, was on Tuesday nominated to the Rajya Sabha.

Sandhu, who is considered to be close to the BJP and will be the sixth nominated member in the Upper House, thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making him “a small part of your monumental mission” while pledging “to strengthen every effort you (Modi) make for our nation and to build a Viksit Bharat by 2047.”

There are six more vacancies of nominated members. At present, Justice Ranjan Gogoi, Dr D Veerendra Heggade, Ilaiyaraaja. Vijayendra Prasad and PT Usha are among the nominated members.

“I welcome the nomination of Satnam Singh Sandhu-ji to the Rajya Sabha. His rich work in community service and his passion towards education, innovation and learning will be big sources of strength for the Rajya Sabha. I wish him the very best for his tenure,” Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said on 'X'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also posted on 'X', “...Sandhu has distinguished himself as a noted educationist and social worker, who has been serving people at the grassroots in different ways.”

“He has always worked extensively to further national integration and has also worked with the Indian diaspora. I wish him the very best for his Parliamentary journey and am confident the Rajya Sabha proceedings will be enriched by his views,” Modi added.

Sandhu thanked Modi for the faith he placed in him and the opportunity given to "become a small part of your monumental mission". He added, "there can be no bigger testament to the new India you are building than the fact that someone like me, from a humble family of farmers, has been given such an opportunity to voice the aspirations of the people. My life is devoted to one mission- to strengthen every effort you make for our nation and to build a Viksit Bharat by 2047."

Responding to Dhankhar's wishes, he said it was a "tremendous honour" to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha and he aspires to dedicate his services to the nation and "being a voice for the people. I remain committed to spreading the idea of 'Viksit Bharat' within our country and abroad."

A son of a farmer who rose to become one of the leading educationists in the country, he is involved in community efforts to improve health and wellness and advance communal harmony through his two NGOs 'Indian Minorities Foundation' and the New India Development (NID) Foundation.

Sandhu established Chandigarh Group of Colleges (CGC) at Landran in Mohali in 2001 and later Chandigarh University in the private sector in 2012, which was recognised by the UGC.