All roads lead to Nanded

The Akal Takht observed the 300th anniversary of the Guru Granth Sahib on Monday. The action now shifts to Maharashtra for another round of celebrations

Ahmedabad: Over 20,000 Sikhs are expected to go to Nanded from Gujarat for the 300th anniversary of Guru Granth Sahib. Before the departure, the community has planned a huge procession here to mark the auspicious occasion. In the run-up to the event, gurdwaras in the city are organising prayers and other devotional programmes.

“All devotees in the state will gather here on October 29 and participate in the procession,” Satnam Singh Dang, president of Guru Gobind Singh Study Circle, said, adding, “After the procession, they will head for Nanded in 40 buses.”

Kolkata: Over 50,000 Sikhs from West Bengal, too, are heading for Nanded to join in the celebrations there.

The 36 gurdwaras under the Central Gurdwara Committee, West Bengal, have made arrangements for the pilgrimage. Committee spokesman S Singh said the registration of members was done. “We will arrange for their travel from Kolkata to Nanded and back and also their stay there,” he said. In Kolkata, too, there will be road processions to mark the occasion. The roads will be watered before the march begins. One group will constantly sweep the road even as they march.

Jaipur: Thousands of Sikh followers from Rajasthan are visiting Hazor Sahib in Nanded for the 300th anniversary functions. In Rajasthan, the Punjabi-Sikh families are concentrated at Sriganganagar and Hanumangarh districts bordering Punjab.

Railway sources said, nearly 5,000 Sikhs boarded a “special train” from Sriganganagar to Nanded on Sunday evening. Another 2,000 pilgrims are coming from Jaipur.

Sardar Jagmohan Singh “Jagga” a server of Gurdwara Singh Sabha, Sriganganagar, said, “We have reserved 16 bogies on special trains, paying Rs 33 lakh to the railways as advance fare.” The Sabha has organised a seven-day trip for pilgrims. Pilgrims from the nearby Hanumangarh district were being accommodated in the same train. Various Gurudwara committees were organising private bus tours to Nanded.

“Since many elderly citizens are undertaking this pilgrimage, we have sent a team of doctors in the train,” Jagga said.

Sardar Malkeet Singh, server of Gurdwara Singh Sabha, said, “We have booked two dozen buses to take 1,200 pilgrims to Nanded.”

(With inputs from Narayan Bhatt in Ahmedabad, Sumanta Ray Chaudhuri in Kolkata and Ashish Mehta in Jaipur)

In England as in Punjab
Hundreds of Gurudwaras around the UK are celebrating the 300th anniversary of the Guru Granth Sahib with Akhand Paths, kirtans and, of course, langars. While some Gurudwaras began the Akhand Paths on Monday, for others it was the culmination of three days of festivities. ‘Today is very special for us because 300 years ago on this day Guru Govind Singh told Sikhs that from now on the Guru Granth Sahib would be the Guru for the world,’ explained DS Randhwa, president of the Shri Guru Singh Sabha in Southall.

Sri Guru Granth Sahib Day in US
Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich, Chicago mayor Richard Daley and Palatine mayor Rita Mullins have proclaimed October 20 as ‘Sri Guru Granth Sahib Day’. They also greeted the Sikh community on the occasion.

500 India-bound Pak pilgrims
Around 500 Pakistani Sikhs are preparing to leave for Nanded in Maharashtra to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the Guru Granth Sahib and 300th death anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh, on October 30 and November 3 respectively. Sikh Gurdwara Prabhandak Committee secretary general Baldev Singh said almost 600 Sikh pilgrims had applied for an Indian visa and 500 were granted it. Before departing for India, the Pakistani Sikhs held their own celebrations at Gurdwara Janam Asthan (Sri Nankana Sahib) at 10am on October 20.

(Sajeda Momin in London, Amir Mir in Islamabad and PTI from New York