Preserving nature theme on Guru Ram Das' birth anniversary eve

Amritsar, October 9, 2013- Devotees celebrated the 479th birth anniversary of the fourth Sikh master, Guru Ram Das, with a pledge to preserve nature and conserve biodiversity . During the nagar kirtan (town procession), EcoAmritsar, an initiative by US-based NGO EcoSikh, in association with Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) and Baba Kulwant Singh Ajnala Wale mobilized volunteers to collect garbage en route.

The organizers made a plan to ensure cleanliness of the city to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Ram Das, founder of Amritsar. The sewadars and student volunteers collected garbage from the roads in recycled bags and loaded it onto trailers and carts provided by SGPC and Amritsar municipal corporation.

EcoAmritsar also shared five steps to 'green langar' leaflets with food stalls along the nagar kirtan route to sensitize public about the growing problem of garbage in the Holy City. In a press release issued on Tuesday, EcoSikh president Rajwant Singh said, "In 1577, Guru Ram Das founded this city with a vision of sustainable development on one hand and nurturing care for nature and biodiversity on the other. In the hymn Vasdi Saghan Apar Anoop Ramdaspur Guru Ram Das thus envisioned Ramdaspur (present day Amritsar) to be a prosperous city that is incomparably beautiful. So our task is to raise awareness among the citizens about this great city and take pride in caring for the Guru Ki Nagri."

Rajwant said current day Amritsar faced many challenges and opportunities. "While burgeoning population and tourist inflows are creating major issues in terms of waste management, traffic and depletion of green cover, the economic opportunity for people of Amritsar is huge. The opportunity, however, is being frittered away in heaps of garbage," the press release mentioned.

"Our team made several trips along the route as a prelude to the nagar kirtan. Each seva jatha (volunteer group), which was putting up chhabeels (stalls serving cold drinks) and langars (community meals) was prevailed upon and requested for support to keep their area clean. A list of dos and don'ts or hidyataan (instructions) was freely distributed along the route," said the chairman of EcoAmritsar, Gunbir Singh. He further said that all residents of Amritsar must take ownership of the city. "People of Amritsar have displayed and proved the possibility of a garbage-free nagar kirtan. There is no bigger tribute to the Guru, who founded the Holy City, than to ensure a clean, green and sustainable city," remarked Gunbir.