Akal Academy Dhanal Kalan students’ trip to Sacred River of Kali Baieen;

Akal Academy Dhanal Kalan Students take pledge for a cleaner and greener environment.

” ਪਹਿਲਾ ਪਾਣੀ ਜੀਓ ਹੈ ਜਿਤੁ ਹਰਿਆ ਸਭੁ ਕੋਇ “
“The Water is the first life, which has given greenery to everything”

“Save Environment”, “Water is precious for us”, “Don’t pollute the air” these are the messages which we read daily through the newspapers, journals and  the magazines; we also often listen similar messages through Radio and TV. Yet we are remain theoretical, we feel it’s the job of the anchors or the writers to keep conveying such messages over and over again.

But there’s a Saint ,Baba Balbir Singh Ji Seechewaal Wale, who is also known as “Environment Lover” for his love for the environment; he has been working dedicatedly since years to save the precious water of Kali Baieen, the sacred river , on the bank on which, Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji spent 14 years 9 months and 13 days.

 To show the practical projects being undertaken by Hon’able Baba Balbir Singh Ji, the Akal Academy located at village Dhanal Kalan, recently organized a visit to the holy place of Sultanpur Lodhi.

The students first went to the memorial Gurdwara Sahib of Bebe Nanaki Ji, the sister of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji. The Manager Veer ji, Bhai Balwinder Singh, welcomed the students and staff of the  Academy; the Granthi Singh honored the staff by giving ‘Siro-pao’. Then the students visited the holy Gurdwara Ber Sahib, where Guru Ji spent several years under the sacred ‘Beri’  tree and the bank of sacred River “Baieen”.

The sacred river, also known as “Kali Baieen” due to its bed of black soil, has long been polluted by the industrialists through their waste disposal that had contaminated its water for years. As a result, the people living near by the rivers started getting affected by the harmful water borne diseases. This river is approx. 160 km long and goes to Rajasthan. In the year 2009, Baba ji took the initiative and organized a march from Sultanpur Lodhi to Bikaner to awaken the people.

After this, a cleaning project was initiated, with the help of Sangat and Sant Mahapurukh, for the cleanliness of the sacred river ‘Kali Baieen’ which got successful by the blessings of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.

The media also supported Baba Ji by publishing the news & updates of the projects from time to time to help promote awareness and fetch support. When the former President of India Dr. Abdul Kalam came to know about this project, he personally visited the sacred land of this river to appreciate the work of Babaji.

For the students, a special presentation and a documentary show was organized at the Multi-Media museum; through which they gained the insightful knowledge about the project. Baba ji also personally interacted with the students and inspired them by explaining how it is our moral duty to give respect and honor to the air, the water and the plants.

On the occasion, he also appreciated Hon’able Baba Iqbal Singh ji for his contribution to the society by facilitating education for the Rural children of India through the network of Akal Academies, which are doing a marvelous job in cocooning the youth from drugs/alcohol abuse and other social evils.

After his interaction, Baba ji checked the TDS level of water from the river and a hand-pump with the help of a meter in front of all the students . The TDS of river water was 165 & that from the hand pump was 362 i.e. the  water from the river was  purer that the of the hand-pump .

He also shared that they are also maintaining a nursery with different  & exotic varieties of plants which are helpful in removal of pollution; the plants are also distributed for free to everyone who visit their project

as “Parshad”.
At the end, S. Manjit Singh , the Punjabi Teacher of Akal Academy,  thanked Baba ji for giving  his valuable time to the students and the staff, and for motivating the students to do their best for this noble cause. As a gesture of assurance the students hailed “Jaikaras” & pledged to walk together to help awaken the society.

All the students received saplings as ‘Parshad’ and their hearts were filled with deep inspiration, zeal and enthusiasm towards serving for the betterment of the society.

A note of thanks was also emailed to Baba Balbir Singh Ji Seechewaal Wale by the Principal, AADK, Ms Harpreet Kaur for having spared his time in personally motivating the students to maintain a clean & green environment .

~ Ramandeep Singh
~ New Delhi, 3rd May ’14