

With a simple Foundation Stone laying ceremony, construction started for the PANDIT JAGAT RAM AGRICULTURE EXCELLENCE CENTER on September 30, 2017 at Ghughial village in Punjab. The Center is named after Pandit Jagat Ram, an illustrious son of Kolara village in Hoshiarpur District, who believed that education and responsible living held the key to prosperity.
The Foundation stone was laid by Sh. Banarsi Lal Bhargava, son of Pandit Jagat Ram.
The Center is a brainchild of Sh Hem Raj Bhargava, trustee of the Pandit Jagat Ram Memorial FORCE Trust and youngest son of Pandit Jagat Ram. He was also present as an honored guest on the occasion. The ceremony was attended by agricultural experts from Punjab and Haryana, leaders of the community from Ghughial and nearby villages and members and well wishers of the Pandit Jagat Ram family.
The Ceremony also included a ‘Kalash Ceremony’ in which women members of thePandit Jagat Ram family offered prayers and ‘Jal Stuti’ to the water source for the institute. They sought the blessings of Water for humanity and promised to spread the message of its value as a celestial gift.
The ceremony was followed by a sumptuous lunch. All vegetables used for the lunch were sourced from Organic and Water Efficient farms.
The Pandit Jagat Ram Agriculture Excellence Center (PJR-AEC) is a part of the FORCE Institute of Water Efficiency – the only institute in India that is dedicated to education, innovation, training and consulting for Water Efficient solutions for industry, agriculture, energy and domestic use.
PJR-AEC will work towards removing the root cause of farmer distress by making farming lucrative and environmentally sustainable.
It shall aim for excellence in agriculture through a bouquet of progressive, innovative courses, training programs, consultancies and projects that are aligned with today’s environmental and market realities.
It will lay special emphasis on supporting innovative entrepreneurial ideas by youth.
Through a modern, internationally linked pedagogy and outreach programs, the institute will aim to help the government in its efforts to double farm income and increase water efficiency by 20% by 2020.
Sh BL Bhargava, son of Pandit Jagat Ram and Chief Guest at the program said, “My father believed in the power of education and balanced living.”
“I am happy that PJR-AEC will harness these to create abundance of water, food and prosperity for all.” He added.

Shri Har Prem Chand Vashisht, Member District Grievance Redressal Committee, Hoshiarpur and grandson of Pandit Jagat Ram said,” I am confident that this institute will prove to be a milestone in the Self Employment generation for rural youth and income enhancement of the farmer”

Speaking on the occasion, Smt Jyoti Sharma, Chairperson, FORCE Institute of Water Efficiency and grand-daughter of Pandit Jagat Ram ji said, “Through the High Income, Water Efficient Agriculture education and support we give at PJR-AEC we want to restore profitability, dignity and environmental sustainability to agriculture. We intend to make agriculture fashionable. This is the need of the country today”