NANDED witnessed largest religious gathering

NANDED witnessed largest religious gathering

Nanded in Maharashtra witnessed one of history's largest religious gatherings as more than 40 million Sikh devotees are expected during the celebrations of the Gurta Gaddi.

The tercentenary event was held to commemorate long cherished history of Sikhs and to reaffirm, rejoice and rejuvenate the global Sikh community. This event involved the remembrance of the 300th year of the consecration of holy book of the Sikhs – Guru Granth Sahib as the eternally steady master – Guru - of entire Sikh community by Guru Gobind Singh. The event lasted for 8 days.

The celebrations began on Simran Diwas, 15th November 2007, when the devotees across the world meditated, participated and celebrated together. For 15 minutes, devotees everywhere recited the Mool Mantra together. On the same day, commenced the Jagriti Yatra, a journey of faith from Nanded to the world. A rath carrying the puratan hand written Bir of Sri Guru Granth Sahib ji & Shastars of Guru Gobind Singh Ji & other shaheed Singhs started it's journey. Jagriti Yatra has covered almost 200 cities in India and culminated on 10th August in Nanded amongst great devotion.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President Pratibha Patil had too became a part of the history, visiting Nanded town to participate in the tercentenary celebrations of Gurta Gaddi on October 30 and November 3 respectively.

Official sources said the Prime Minister and the President visited the Takhat Sachkhand Shri Hazur Abchalnagar Sahib Gurdwara besides attending the ‘samagam’ or convention at the samagam hall during their brief stay.
About NANDED:
Nanded is a place with great historical significance. Situated in Marathwada region of Maharashtra on the north bank of Godavari, it is famous for Sikh Gurudwaras. Nanded is a very old town, the history of which is traced down to the Puranic days. In Puranic period, Pandavas traveled through Nanded district while Nandas ruled over Nanded through ages. The last guru of Sikhs Sri Guru Gobind Singh visited the city in 1708 and decided to settle here until he breathed his last. Sri Guru Gobind Singh proclaimed himself the last Guru – the spiritual leader- and established the Guru Granth Sahib as the eternal Guru after his demise. A monument has been constructed at place where the last Guru breathed his last. Around 1835, Maharaja Ranjit Singh constructed a beautiful Gurudwara at Nanded which features an imposing golden dome with intricate carvings and spectacularly beautiful artwork. This Gurudwara is known as Shri Huzur Abchalnagar Sachkhand Gurudwara. Considering its occurrence in 100 years, the Gurta Gaddi celebration was deemed with high importance for Sikh Community. An estimated 30 to 40 lakh Sikh devotees were gathered in Nanded from around the globe to commemorate 300 years of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji – 300 saal guru de naal (reliving 300 years with the Guru).

The year 2008 had certainly gone down in the pages of history as a golden year for the Sikh community. The eternal Guru (Akal purkh) celebration took place on October 30, 2008 while the heavenly journey (Parlokgaman) of Sri Guru Gobind Singh was organised on November 3, 2008, while the revolution of devotion that started with the Jagriti Yatra had touched and replenished millions of lives during the historical 'Shatabdi Samagam' from 29th October to 4th November.
Due to expected massive influx of tourists to the Nanded town, large scale infrastructure preparations concerning accommodation, transport, utilities, and Gurudwara development was taken care of. Maharashtra Government in advanced had earmarked a budget of Rs. 817 crore to create infrastructure facilities for pilgrims. The central government was contributed to it. The entire Gurudwara complex was redesigned with modern amenities to accommodate at least 40,000 devotees in its prikrama. Close to the Gurudwara, a complex called the Guru Granth Sahib Bhavan was constructed to spread the message of the last Guru with the help of various traditional modern media. This complex can now accommodate 4000 devotees.

Arrangements for Devotees: Free stay at several camp-sites was arranged for millions of devotees expected to visit Nanded for the celebrations. These modern camp-sites had all necessary facilities like medical, electricity, langar halls, wash areas and parking. From September 20th, special trains to Nanded were being run from all over the country.

The Hazur Sahib Gurdwara with the golden dome and intricate art work, was built by Maharaja Ranjit Singh between 1830 and 1835. Nanded also has 10 other gurdwaras that have historical importance for Sikhs. The Nagina Ghat, Bandh Ghat, Maltekdi, Heera Ghat, Mata Saheb, Shikar Ghat, Sangat Sahib, Ratangarh, Gobind Bagh and Damdama Sahib (Basmat) are located in the vicinity of Nanded. The Nanaksar, Langar Sahib and Bhajangarh Sahib were later additions to the list of pilgrim sites.