600 join Singapore Sikhs harmony walk

By Asia Samachar Team | SINGAPORE |

Some 600 Sikhs and fellow Singaporeans took part in the Sikh Community Harmony Walk yesterday (17 August 2019) to celebrate Guru Nanak’s 550^th birthday.

Themed ‘Towards a United Community’, the walk was organised by Singapore Khalsa Association (SKA) and Sri Guru Singh Sabha Singapore (SGSS), in partnership with the Inter-Religious Organisation (IRO).

The event witnessed two groups of participants starting from the IRO office and SGSS and walking to the assembly point at Race Course Road.

Senior minister of state for education and trade & industry Chee Hong Tat flagged off the final leg of the walk from Race Course Road to SKA. He joined the participants during the walk to SKA.

Prof Dr Sean Rozario, who chairs the Moulmein-Cairnhill’s Inter-Racial and Religious Confidence Circle (IRCC), flagged off at the SGSS end.

In his address, Chee said the event theme was a strong and constant reminder of the important role that all communities play in creating a united Singapore society.

“The Sikh community’s contributions to Singapore have been significant and it is a vibrant component of our society. The Sikh community numbers about 12,000 in Singapore. This is modest when compared to the other communities.

“However, the Sikh community’s contributions to Singapore have been significant. It has earned a strong reputation for itself, which is the result of a long process of building bridges with the other communities by leveraging the strengths of the Sikh community,” he said.

The Sikhs in Singapore have come together under the auspices of the Coordinating Committee of Sikh Institutions to organise a series of activities and programmes between December 2018 and November 2019 to mark Guru Nanak’s 550th birthday.

The committee is chaired by entrepreneur and former parliamentarian Inderjit Singh.

RELATED STORY:

Singapore Sikhs target 550,000 volunteer hours to mark Guru Nanak 550th birthday (Asia Samachar, 30 Nov 2018)

Singapore president at gurdwara centennial celebration (Asia Samachar, 24 June 2018)