REHEARSAL ON OCT 6, FOLLOWED BY FINAL EVENT ON OCT 8 TO BE PRESIDED OVER BY PRESIDENT DROUPADI MURMU, A.S. PRASHAR PUNJAB EXPRESS BUREAU Chandigarh, October 4 The UT Administration has declared Sukhna Lake out of bounds for visitors till 6 pm on October 6 and October 8 in view of the rehearsal for the IAF air show and the final event that will be presided over by President Droupadi Murmu, respectively. Apart from this, all kinds of entertainment activities for the general public will also remain closed on these two days. During her twoday maiden visit to Chandigarh, after the air show on October 8, the President will also attend a civic reception at the Punjab Raj Bhavan, where she will also be retiring for the day. On October 9, she will be the chief guest at PEC’s annual convocation, and also lay foundation stones and inaugurate some projects the same day. According to UT adviser Dharam Pal, as regards the air show, which was scheduled from 2.30 pm to 5.30 pm on both October 6 and 8, the entire Sukhna Lake area had been divided into seven zones with separate entry staircases. Each zone has also been mapped with 11 alighting/parking points for smooth movement. He said the public was allowed to attend both the rehearsal and final event, but only with entry passes that can be obtained from the Chandigarh Tourism App. Being organised to mark IAF Day, the event will feature all modern aircraft, including Rafael, Sukhoi Su-30, Jaguar, MiG 29, C-17 Globemaster, IL76, Chinook, Apache and Mi-17, with performances by the Sarang air display and Surya Kiran aerobatics teams. Before commencement of the air show, a halfan-hour programme will be presented by the Akashganga Paratrooper team. On October 9, President Droupadi Murmu will be the chief guest at the annual convocation of the Punjab Engineering College (PEC), which is being held after a two-year Covid-induced hiatus. As many as 669 BTech, 168 MTech and 34 PhD degrees will be awarded during the ceremony. However, students’ parents will not be allowed to attend the event. PEC officials said a pandal will be set up in the football ground, with a seating capacity of around 1,000 people: “Under these circumstances, allowing parents is not possible.” PEC director Baldev Setia said, “The institute is privileged that the President is coming to the convocation. This will also be the closing ceremony for PEC’s centenary year celebrations.” This year, the graduating students will ditch the western graduation robes in favour of traditional Indian attire – a first at any city college.