Chandigarh 26 Jun 20. With culmination of the first ever ‘Ek Bharat ShreshthaBharat Saptah’ Webinar on 27 Jun 20, a milestone has been added to the history of National Cadet Corps in this unique experiment of virtually bringing together Cadets of distant states to share their regional heritage.

The event witnessed overwhelming participation of about 100 cadets from Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Chandigarh, Karnataka and Goa. The colorful show put up by the cadets included video presentations on SWOT analysis of each state, songs & dance performances and innovative ‘ NukkadNatak’ shot individually by cadets at their houses and then edited digitally. Karnataka & Goa cadets also underwent a capsule on Punjabi language and grasped a few phrases very well. Though, cadets of Punjab and Chandigarh struggled to respond in the practice session of Kannad & Konkani yet with the help of their counterparts flowing freely in the chatbox, they did enjoy the conversation.

The interaction was made further interesting by conducting a debate competition and an online quiz at the end of the webinar. The forceful arguments put forth by the participants, for and against the motion on ‘Social Media is a Boon for Humanity’, were indeed heartening. The keen contest was won by Cadet Yashika with Cadet Nishtha being second and Cadet Sudeep Raj being Third. The five cadets who won prizes in the online quiz are Cadet Mohammed Hayan, PO Cadet Harman Kaur Saini, Cadet Muskan, Cadet Sourabh Jangraand Cadet Lovepreet Singh.

In his message to the participants, Maj Gen Beji Mathews, Additional Director General of the host Directorate of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Chandigarh commended the enthusiasm, confidence and active participation of cadets in thenovel experiment to deal with the unprecedented circumstance and moving ahead with NCC activities in the new normal. He also exhorted all cadets to keep in mind the security aspects of online platforms and maintain superior Cyber Hygiene. He encouraged cadets to be flag bearers of the youth in theNational Integration campaign. The General appreciated Dr Shilpi Ahuja, NCC Caretaker of DAV College, Sector 10, Second Officer Harjit Kaur of GMSSS 20 Chandigarh, Flying Officer Alwyn Misquithof St Aloysius College, Mangalore for moderating the sessions.He congratulated all the participants and the Chandigarh Group of NCC for setting very high standards for such events to be held in future.

The feedback obtained online from the participants has been very encouraging. The showcasing of the states done by cadets has surely created a desire to visit each other in the post social distancing era.