News & Update

As the year approaches the end, the global world Sikh community commemorates the martyrdom of YOUNGEST Martyrs in the history of the world.

On this darkest of days, their youngest hero and bravest comrade of Sikhism, Sahibzada Fateh Singh (1699-1705) who was the youngest of Guru Gobind Singh’s four sons, Sahibzada Zorawar Singh (1696-1705), his elder brother and Mata Gujar Kaur ji, his grandmother sacrificed their lives for their faith and the right to remain Sikhs.

The Chote Sahibzade – Fateh Singh & Zoravar Singh, snuggle in the warm embrace of their loving grandmother – Mata Gujri. Imprisoned in the open tower (Thanda Burj) in the freezing month of December, their radiant faces show no pain or regret at their unwavering decision to uphold Sikhi at all costs. The innocence and boundless purity of these noble souls reflects on their faces.

Gurdwara Fatehgarh Sahib which is situated 5 km north of Sirhind marks the sad site of the execution of the two younger sons of Guru Gobind Singh at the behest of Wazir Khan of Kunjpura, the faujdar of Sirhind. Baba Fateh Singh with his elder brother, set a precedence in Sikh history (and perhaps also in world history) by becoming the youngest known martyrs to sacrifice their lives for their principles.

On 26 December 1705, Baba Fateh Singh ji was cruelly and mercilessly martyred at Sirhind along with his elder brother, Zorawar Singh. He is probably the youngest recorded martyr in history who knowingly and consciously laid down his life at the very tender age of 6 years.

The mind boggles to understand how children of such young age had the, courage, bravery and focus to refuse the promise of many lavish gifts and a future of cosy comforts of royalty that were being offered by the Mughals if they abandoned their faith against the other stark option of a brutal, painful and tragic death entombed within a wall of bricks and mortar.

The world salutes the supreme sacrifice of these kids who never once – even of a moment considered the easy option and remained focused on their mission to uphold the principles of God’s kingdom and allowed their bodies to be tortured and violated and endured the intense pain of a slow, pain-ridden and certain death

~ Source: Sikhiwiki

Every morning, I wrap a lineage

of revolution around my head

of women with fists like iron

of humans that laughed in the face

of fear.

Every turn of cloth

sounds like revolt

every fold a vow to rebel.

Once upon a time

kings tied turbans

and if you couldn’t claim

royal heritage a crown upon

your head would mean death

but I come from a lineage of

courage

and

where there was once fear

arose a sea of rebels that held

a rebellious notion

that human life meant freedom,

that equality was a birthright and

not an earned privilege

and when the Sixth Sikh Guru

told his comrades

to tie crowns

of cloth they angered a system of

inequality

shattered political

privilege in Punjab and rose before

a state that wished only to sedate

putting their lives on the line

for

seven meters of cotton

desiring death before oppression.

I tie a revolution around my

flowing hair every morning

I awake with the notion that your

life means just as much as mine

that all human life deserves respect.

Every morning,

I crown myself with

a vow to speak for the voiceless

every morning, I

honour a thousand rebellions

against injustice

every morning

I rise up for freedom

every morning

I decide that I am free.

~ Source- www.kaurlife.org

A man from the Patel family shared in a video of how he became enlightened and became a Sikh of the Guru. The man known as Parveen Bhai by his friends went through distress in his life which made him become suicidal. He visited Sri Harmandir Sahib to seek blessings and became enlightened at the Holy Sikh site.

The visit at Sri Harmandir Sahib transformed his life and ever since he’s followed the teachings of the Sikh Gurus. The man now practices Sikh teachings and keeps a beard and wears a turban. He’s now known as Parveen Singh.

Jaspal Singh has been working for the London metropolitan police for 22 years. In this time with the Met he has worked in the anti-terrorism branch, murder investigation unit and patrolled some of the most crime ridden boroughs in the capital.

Having spent decades serving the British public, devoted Sikh Jaspal is now turning his attention to fighting poverty instead of crime. Due to his service, Jaspal has been given a three year break from his job as a police officer to be allowed take up a project to develop a free school for the slum children of South India.

Jaspal will be in charge of raising funds for the school and managing the development as it goes from a one hall site into a three storey education centre capable of catering for hundreds of children. Jaspal is a family man, with two children of his own currently in university. He will be regularly travelling to India from the new year to lead the project. The Detective Sergeant hopes that the benevolent British public who have been at the core of his daily life, will now support him and his charity, 23p a Day, in its newly found cause of “Give a child an education, Give a child a future”.

About 23p a Day-

23p a Day is an international not-for-profit organisation inspired by the principle of charity in the name of humanity. At 23p a Day, it believes, “True charity is the one which makes one free from charity”.

Precisely, the 23P mission is to do exactly this by eradicating poverty from its roots, through the provision of education to children in impoverished circumstances. This is achievable via the small donation of just 23p a Day.

It aims to shelter, nurture, and most importantly educate 3-17 year old under-privileged children from slum backgrounds with the correct tools to build a better future today and for generations to come. This is possible through their aim of setting up primary and secondary public schools situated throughout various cities across India. At present the main focus is to establish our first school in Maharashtra India. They aim to provide disadvantaged children outstanding education alongside, school meals, books, clothing and transport to and from school.

The story of Jaspal shows the true community spirited nature of a man that has enforced the law in London since the early 90s.

~ Jaspal Singh

A Sikh turban symbolizes the virtues and values that our Gurus have taught us. Everyday Kaur ties her turban, she promises to abide by the values.

It is not a piece of cloth tied to one’s head. It is a promise to serve humanity and share goodwill.

“I came to Bombay in 1962 and started driving a taxi in 1964. My older brother and I lived in the same house and we raised our families together. He passed away in a car accident suddenly in 1975 and all of a sudden I was the head of the family with 10 people to support. I educated his children like mine, gave them the same pocket money and took care of them like my own and all my income was because of this taxi here.

As all the children grew older, they took up part time jobs and eventually went on to get amazing job offers. My son is an MBA graduate who lives in London, my daughter has married in Canada and 4 of my brother’s children are in Canada as well. My son was dating a girl from London, so when he told me that she’s visiting us here in Bombay I was worried that she might not want to marry a taxi driver’s son. When she came here and met our family, she said that she had never felt so loved before. They got married soon after and she often calls me and tells me to come to live with them in London. I’ve picked up some English from her, so I tell her – ‘save your money – I’m working here very happily.’ I also ask her if she’ll get such good Sarso da Saag in London – to which she says she’s learning how to cook! My son even tells me, ‘Baba, it’s our turn to give you pocket money now’ but I laugh it off.

My life has been very simple. I’m 75 and still working because I believe that man should work as long as he can — what good are your days of sitting around? A lot of people ask me to go to London or Canada and live with my children, but I feel wrong to do that. I have never accepted a free meal and I like to be Independent. Of course I visit my children, but my home is India. How can I leave this taxi and Bombay when they have given me so much?

~ Source- Humans Of Bombay

It is an inescapable irony that the man leading the delivery of Waterloo Region’s ION LRT commutes every day from Brampton, a city that recently rejected a provincially funded LRT down its main street.

When Darshpreet Bhatti isn’t obsessing over the details of light rail, he is dreaming of the heavy rail that would transform his daily trip to work.

He can’t wait until the province delivers the two-way, all-day GO service that would free him from the daily drive between his home and the region offices in Kitchener.

It will be a few years before GO trains are running there in the morning. But given that Bhatti’s wife teaches at a school walking distance from their home, he doesn’t expect to be moving closer to the office any time soon.

His commute ranges from 70 minutes in the summer to upwards of two hours in winter. A lot of that car time is spent on the phone — hands-free, of course — catching up with colleagues, particularly now that he’s so often out on the LRT route checking the construction that precedes the laying of rails.

“Keeping everyone focused is perhaps the biggest challenge,” he says of his role as rapid transit director.

“Big projects, you always have ups and downs and I have to make sure the staff that are working diligently on this — more than the average job — are fully focused, are passionate about it, are motivated to do it day in and day out until the project is done,” he said.
Just because he drives a car to work, doesn’t mean Bhatti, 36, can’t relate to those who, by choice or necessity, use transit.

He remembers relying on Mississauga’s bus system to get to the subway at Islington Station when he was studying engineering at U of T. It instilled in him the belief that reliability — followed by frequency — trumps all other attributes when it comes to transit.

“As a student you’re not always as punctual so you know you’re late for your lecture. But if the bus doesn’t come on time you’ll definitely miss it,” he said.

The same applies whether you’re a worker or just running an errand, said Bhatti. Cost and comfort are important but they are secondary.

“You want a system that you can rely on. If it says five minutes you want the bus to be there in five minutes or you want the train to be there in five minutes,” he said.

Bhatti has already been involved in the planning and execution of virtually every mode of transportation, from bike lanes and widening highways to light rail.

Before joining Waterloo in 2008, he worked as a consultant on projects around the Toronto region including with the Toronto Waterfront Revitalization Corp., the TTC on the St. Clair streetcar right-of-way and the first Ottawa LRT plan that was subsequently killed by that city.

After consulting, Bhatti was hired by Oshawa where he worked on the widening of Highway 401 and options for moving the GO line to the north side of the 401 — something that hasn’t happened.

Leading the ION project has been a long series of highs and lows, he says — from the uncertainty of approvals by four levels of government to the victory of winning over a skeptical public.

“We went through years of discussing what is the right choice for this project in terms of technology. Getting consensus from the public at large — saying this is the right project and supporting the work you have done — is a pretty major milestone in my mind.”
Five things to know about the LRT

1. Each stop on the ION LRT will have a unique identifying piece of art or feature wall using different treatments and finishes that reflect the neighbourhood.

2. The light rail vehicles will operate in their own lane, separated from car and truck traffic for enhanced reliability.

3. LRT stops will be integrated with new and existing development wherever possible to encourage riders to choose transit and reward nearby businesses with foot traffic.

4. Stops will be well lit with canopies to shelter riders, and will include route and next vehicle arrival information.

5. A perforated yellow strip along the platforms will help guide and protect riders with visual disabilities.

~ Source: thestar.com