Study shows fewer new jobs in Punjab

July 6th, 2009

Patiala, July 1: A comparative study by the Economics Department at Punjabi University, Patiala, has revealed that Punjab is lagging behind for providing employment to its educated and skilled people in the last two decades.

This is the result of a drastic fall of growth rate in the manufacturing sector of Punjab during the post-reform period in comparison to pre-reform period in terms of value of output and value addition, as a result of slow capacity growth and failure to improve the productivity growth in various manufacturing sectors.

Dr Manjit Sharma, under the supervision of Prof Sucha Singh Gill, carry out in-depth study of manufacturing industry from the organised sector deals with four manufacturing industries, including food, textiles, basic metal and alloy, transport equipment and parts along with the unorganised manufacturing sector, with focus on fiscal years 1980-81 (pre-reform period) to 2002-03 (post-reform period).

The study revealed that the food industry had seen marginal hike in its share in the manufacturing sector of the state from 17 per cent in 1980-81 to 23 per cent in 2002-03, thus maintained its dominance in providing employment and its status as labour intensive industry. Whereas, basic metal and alloy industry suffered a major setback on employment front, as its share declined from 14 per cent in 1980-81 to 6 per cent in 2002-03. As expected, the downfall in number of units led to reduction in share of employment.

The percentage share of transport equipment and parts industry doubled during the study period, providing a major relief to organised manufacturing sector.

The political turmoil, inefficient bureaucracy and militancy in the 1980s led to flight of capital to neighbouring states. The introduction of high fiscal incentives during Vajpayee’s regime in the neighbouring hill states further led to fall in capital accumulation in the state after 2002-03.

Negligible employment elasticity, lack of adequate finance and poor infrastructure were the other core issues. These reasons failed to increase the rate of employment in the post-reform period.

Meanwhile, the unorganised manufacturing sector witnessed higher growth rate as compared to organised sector in terms of fixed capital, input-output, gross value added, number of units, level of employment and emoluments, during the study period. “But the problem with the unorganised manufacturing sector in Punjab - they are tiny units and not under the control of state government and are incapable of providing basic benefits to employees,” says Sucha Singh Gill, eminent economist, HoD, Economics Department, Punjabi University.

Dr Sucha Singh Gill said in year 2003, during the BJP government at Centre the neighbouring states, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, got special package and concession on setting up industrial unit, that alternatively effected the manufacturing units of Punjab, then later on, the concessions were extended for further five years by the Congress. “Either government should withdraw benefits given to other states or the benefits should be extended to Punjab as well, this would eventually help bring in back the shifted manufacturing sector, increasing employment opportunity in Punjab,” added Gill.

Giani Gurbachan Singh Performs Ardas' For Rains In Andhra Pradesh

July 6th, 2009 by S Bhag Singh

Hyderabad, July 5 : The Sikh community of Andhra Pradesh today performed a special ``Ardas'' (a Sikh prayer that is performed for a significant task) for rains across the country more particularly for the state.

The Ardas was performed by Giani Gurbachan Singhji, Jathedar of Akal Takht Saheb, the Supreme temporal authority for Sikhs across the world during the 414th birthday celebrations of sixth Sikh Guru, Sri Guru Hargobind Sahebji held at Maharana Pratap Function Hall, Amberpet here today.

It is almost one-month to the onset of south-west monsoon over Andhra Pradesh but there is no sign of rains. As the state recorded a huge deficit in the rainfall in the month of June, serious crisis is looming large on the horizon and specter of drought is staring at the state.
In connection with the birthday celebrations of Sri Guru Hargobind Sahebji, the Prabhandak Committee,Gurudwara Saheb, Hargobindpuri, Amberpet organised a ``Vishaal Deewan'' (Mass Congregation) at the function hall, Amberpet in which reputed Ragi Jathas (community preachers) played Gurbani Keertan.

They include Bhai Gurmeet Singh of Darbar Saheb, Harmandir Saheb (Golden Temple), Amritsar, Bhai Gurmail Singh of Toombiwale and other Ragi Jathas. After the culmination of the congregation Guru-ka-Lanagr was served to the devotees.

I was born in Punjab.

I came to the US about 7 years ago, after high school. I keep the 5 Ks, but have not yet taken Amrit. I draw looks wherever I go. Sometimes curious. Mostly hostile. The hostility arises from ignorance. Our community has done a bang up job of keeping Americans ignorant about us. Someone needs to get a medal for that.

After all these years, I have come to the conclusion that our religion is under the yoke of an imperial power known as Punjabi culture. I have lost count of the number of Indian Hindu friends who gape at me when I tell them that I do not drink alcohol.

I guess I should give you some background about why I think the way I do. About three years ago, when I entered grad school, I met a girl from Philly. I liked her. She liked me. She was not Punjabi, but came from a hard working ethnic Irish family. We dated. We never did anything physical, so no violation of the Rehat was involved. Try telling that to the Granthi of the gurudwara I used to go to, though. The fellow is in the US, but does not speak a word of proper English. Someone's case for a medal is getting stronger.

Getting back to her. She taught me how to cook some American dishes. I taught her everything I knew about Punjabi cookery. About a year ago, she told me that she was serious about me and my faith. I held off on on the engagement because there was something at the back of my mind that told me to be cautious.

There is a nice little informal Gurudwara in the neighboring town which is run by white Sikhs from New Mexico. You can guess why we decided to go there. She took Amrit that day. I promised her that I would take Amrit the day after we met both sets of parents.

I met her parents that weekend. They were concerned about me. But her mother was very gracious. Even went as far as making a special dessert for the dinner.

We flew up to NY to meet with my parents. I had already told my parents that I was bringing home a girl I liked, and that she was not Punjabi, but was going to become a Sikh (this was two weeks earlier). They did not sound very happy about it, but did not create a fuss.

What happened next is one of the worst episodes of my life. My parents, sisters were all insistent that I stop seeing her. Called her some choice names to her face - names that no decent woman should ever have to listen to. My brother tried to intervene, but the damage was done.

The upshot. My to-be fiance, who changed her faith, learned how to cook my favourite food, learned our language, possibly got into some trouble with her family, was humiliated by people I love and care for. For the crime of loving me. All because she was not born in Punjab. Or had no Punjabi DNA anywhere in her heritage.

I offered to disown my family. She would not have any of it. We broke up after a painful two weeks. She wanted to add another family to her own, but it was not to be.

Someone forgot to give my uber-Punjabi family the memo with the words :

Maanas ki jaat, sabhe aike pacchaan bo.

Since then, my mother has pestered me with bios of one strange woman after another. Apparently, they have the right DNA. Coming on the heels of this traumatic time, I am not interested any more in this. At least now. I have begun to hate the one I have.

Are these people any better than a Punjabi version of the KKK ?

Maybe I will never marry, or have kids. My viewpoint on this entire matter has been irrevocably colored by this experience. I just want to make sure that this issue of Punjabi racism, which shames me, is not pushed under the carpet, and my brothers and sisters in faith are aware of this and work to oppose it.

I know where I went wrong. It is easy to be wise after the event. I just hope that my experience can serve to help someone who feels the way I do, but is too nice to speak out against this.

What is the best way in which we can free this beautiful and precious thing called Sikhi from this monstrosity called Punjabiyat ?

Waheguru Ji Ka Khalsa,
Waheguru Ji Ki Fateh,

Ranjeet

Banned Islamists fighting twin battle

Isambard Wilkinson, Foreign Correspondent

• Last Updated: June 21. 2009 1:28PM UAE / June 21. 2009 9:28AM GMT

Activists of the Hizb-ut-Tahrir take to the streets last month, chanting slogans accusing the Pakistani army of fighting “America’s war”. Muzammil Pasha for The National

RAWALPINDI // Among the many Islamist political movements in Pakistan, only one has unequivocally and consistently demonstrated against military operations aimed at crushing the Taliban: Hizb-ut-Tahrir.

On May 31 the movement, whose name means “Party of Liberation”, organised protests across the country, chanting slogans accusing the Pakistani army of fighting “America’s war”.

In the northern Pakistani city of Rawalpindi, a garrison town outside the capital, a crowd of 200 of the party’s supporters were dispersed by a police baton charge and tear gas.

Imran Yousafzai, th Isambard Wilkinson the deputy spokesman of Hizb-ut-Tahrir (HT) in Pakistan, admitted that another Islamist political party, Jamaat-i-Islam, had also staged a protest against the operation in Swat valley. But he said its leadership had “compromised its position” by signing an all-party declaration that supported operations against militants.

Mr Yousafzai said more than 100 HT members were arrested during the protest and remain in jail.

The former president, Pervez Musharraf, in 2004 banned the group on the grounds that a former member was alleged to have been involved in a plot on his life.

HT claims to be gaining influence in Pakistan despite the ban.

“The majority of Pakistanis want a form of religious law, as survey after survey shows – and that is despite the brutal form to which the militants introduced Sharia in Swat,” Mr Yousafzai said.


HT’s theory on fighting in Swat is that it is merely carrying out “Obama’s Af-Pak strategy, to extend the war into Pakistan”.

“What they want to do is to tie people up in fighting in Pakistan so that they did not attack occupation forces in Afghanistan,” he said.

The movement was founded in 1952 by a Palestinian sheikh, Taqiuddin Nabahani, an Islamic jurist in Haifa during the British Mandate (1922-1948) who studied at Cairo’s Al Azhar University and was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood.

HT, which claims to have hundreds of thousands of members around the world, has an extensive central Asian network, though its strongest base lies further to the east, in Indonesia. It is working on establishing an Islamic caliphate and claims to have a plan for such a state.

Its members take part in demonstrations, hold public meetings and hand out leaflets largely unobstructed. In Aug 2007 tens of thousands of people demonstrated in support of a caliphate in a stadium in Jakarta.

“We have two main aims: firstly, in the long term, to implement a blueprint of an Islamic constitution, which we have made,” Mr Yousafzai said.

“Secondly, to work in major cities and take people out in the street to force the government to not take part in democracy.”

He could not deny that the grand scheme was not yet tested by reality, but insisted: “We are serious people. We have worked out all the details.”
The group pledges non-violence, but past members have alleged that in some countries, including Pakistan, a key strategy was to foment a military coup.

In 2006, the BBC’s Panorama television programme aired a speech made in August that year by Ata Abu-Rishta, the global leader of Hizb-ut-Tahrir, when he called for the “destruction” of Hindus living in Kashmir, Russians in Chechnya and Jews in Israel. But after terrorist attacks on the United States in 2001 and Britain in 2005, the group issued statements saying the “rules of Islam do not allow the harming of innocent civilians”.

In fact, Mr Yousafzai said that although jihad was justified against an occupying force, only an Islamic state’s army was permitted to wage holy war.

The Pakistani army chief, Gen Ashfaq Kiyani, however, is a “traitor” in Mr Yousafzai’s eyes because of the military operations against the Taliban in Swat and elsewhere along the Afghan border.

Pakistan became the centre of an unusual scuffle for hearts and minds last month when a former HT member began preaching against militancy. Maajid Nawaz gave speeches to thousands of university students across the country emphasising the need to renounce radicalism.

“We must reclaim Islam,” the British citizen of Pakistani descent told 100 students on a campus close to Islamabad last month. “We must reclaim Pakistan.”

While Pakistan has poured troops and weaponry into its fight against the Taliban and other extremist groups, it has adopted few of the softer measures aimed at dissuading militancy.

Mr Yousafzai said he was aware of Mr Nawaz’s activities in Pakistan.
“I heard he was once an active member in Pakistan,” he said. “I am sad to say that he is now working against Islam.”

A member of Hizb-ut-Tahrir punched Mr Nawaz in the face after he gave a talk in Lahore.

Mr Nawaz receives a salary as director of the Quilliam Foundation, a think tank that challenges extremism and promotes pluralism, and is partly funded by the British government. “He has been hired by the British secret services,” Mr Yousafzai said. “He is working to crush Islam.”
iwilkinson@thenational.ae

Militants plotting coup in Pakistan

IANS
Sunday, July 5, 2009 23:33 IST


London: An Islamic militant group based in Britain plans to overthrow the Pakistani government, a British media report said on Sunday. Followers of the fundamentalist group Hizb ut-Tahrir have called for a 'bloodless military coup' in Islamabad and the creation of a caliphate in which strict Islamic laws would be rigorously enforced.

The group is believed to have been set up in Pakistan in the early 1990s by Imtiaz Malik, a British-born Pakistani who may still be secretly operating as its leader in the country. Members of the group, which is banned in Pakistan and calls itself the Liberation party in Britain, said last week that it planned to make Pakistan a base to spread Islamic rule across the world.

"Pakistan was neglected and ignored until it had a nuclear bomb and then the global leaders realised it would be a good strategic base for the caliphate," said Maajid Nawaz, one of the organisation's pioneers in Pakistan, who has since renounced the group. Nawaz claimed at least 10 British activists were planted in each of Pakistan's main cities.

Shahzad Sheikh, a Pakistani recruit and the group's official spokesman in Karachi, said that the group plans to persuade the army to instigate a "bloodless coup" against the present government which he described as "worse than the Taliban". "It is the military who hold the power (in Pakistan) and we are asking them to give their allegiance to Hizb ut-Tahrir," he said. "I can't explain to you in detail how we are trying to influence the military. You may say it is a coup," he added.

Pak terrorists fire rockets at Punjab border villages

6 Jul 2009, 0028 hrs IST, Yudhvir Rana, TNN


AMRITSAR: Pakistan-based terrorists attacked two villages, Dhandae and Baherwal, in Attari block in Amritsar with rockets late on Saturday night,

A policeman holding the portion of a rocket which fell in Dhandae village.
More Pictures

injuring one youth and spreading panic in the region. One of the three rockets fell within the Pakistani territory.

This is the first time that Indian villages along the International Border have been targeted during peace time from Pakistani soil. It was on March 30 this year that 12 armed Taliban terrorists had attacked the Manawan Police Academy in Pakistan's Punjab, barely 8km from the Indian border (and about 10km from the two villages), and killed eight people. Three of the attackers wearing suicide jackets then blew themselves up, while four were caught and taken to an undisclosed destination.

"On Saturday night, around 9.50pm, three rockets were fired from the Pakistani side of which two landed in Dhandae and Baherwal villages close to the International Border. A youth was injured,'' said BSF Inspector General Himmat Singh.

Saying the rockets could have been fired by Pakistan-based terror groups, IG Himmat Singh said, "We held a commandant-level meeting on Saturday night with Pakistan Rangers and conveyed our strong protest." He also said Pakistan Rangers assured them of an investigation into the incident.

BSF officers said the rocket must have covered at least 4.5km, which means it must have been fired from a site 2km inside Pakistan. They also said the attack could have been a retaliatory action to the killing of a Pakistani intruder, presumably a Taliban member or from some other terrorist group, by BSF on Saturday afternoon near the border fence.
The attack poses a serious threat to thousands of locals as well as tourists who visit the Attari checkpost to watch the Beating Retreat ceremony. The BSF does not have the weaponry or defence system to thwart such rocket attacks from across the border.

The rocket in Dhandae fell in an irrigated paddy field and exploded, leaving a crater about 10 feet wide. Residents panicked and rushed out of their homes for safety. A part of the paddy field was also burnt. Senior BSF, Army and police officials soon reached the spot.

Dilbagh Singh (24), an eyewitness who received splinter injuries, said, "I saw a ball of fire falling in the paddy field and then something hit my leg. I got scared and limped away from the site."

Another eyewitness Sukhwinder Kaur said, "We panicked and ran out of our homes as it seemed like Pakistan had attacked us. What if the rocket had hit our houses?" she asked.

BSF found the tail of the rocket and another part bearing a mark, `07R'. Some BSF jawans said they saw the rocket at a height of about 300 metres from ground level coming in from the Pakistani side on Saturday night. Further measures to strengthen the security along the border are being taken.

Attachments - Sikh Philosophy Network

 

NEW DELHI: EcoSikh is a five-year plan formulated by the US-based Sikh Council of Religion and Education (SCORE) to spread green knowledge throughout the Sikh community and encourage environmental activism among Sikhs worldwide. "A grid and pledge, named Eco-Sikh, persuades all Sikhs to create a global network of cooperation to help execute an action plan that will help meet today's environmental challenges. It combines spirituality and practical action", says Rajwant Singh, SCORE chairman, who has launched a website, ecoSikh: Home.

Sikh leaders from around the world are committing themselves to reduce global warming, in collaboration with the UN Development Program and UK-based Alliance of Religions and Conservation. Addressing the EcoSikh meeting in Delhi, UNDP's director of development policy Olav Kjorven said "Thro-ughout history religions have helped people and civilizations interpret and understand events around them and to respond to new challenges in light of their spiritual heritage and moral compass... the leadership of religions is now required to meet challenge of climate change." He quoted from Guru Nanak's verse that likened the sky to a platter and the sun and moon to lamps.

Justice Kuldeep Singh said he was delighted that Sikh community was taking upon itself the noble service of forging environment-friendly practices. "As Sikhs we have a responsibility to revere the environment. A Sikh's life is incomplete if he does not revere Nature," he said. "Environmental ethics has always been an inherent part of India's precepts and philosophy and the environment has always been given an honourable place," he said. "But now we are only polluting it."

There are four factors we need to remember, said Justice Singh: that the earth is warming; that this is due to release of increasing volumes of greenhouse gases; that the climate is changing because of human activity and that we can only expect Hell on Earth if we don't take any action now.

by Jagmohan Singh

It was striking that a frail man, a one-time monk, living in the backwaters of Delhi, well informed about world developments should take so keen an interest in Sikh affairs and particularly the human rights violations of the Sikhs in the last few decades. Such was Ram Narayan Kumar.

He is no more. He expired on Sunday June 28 in his house in Kathmandu.

When the powers that be in Punjab and India were ruling Punjab under their jackboots, this skinny activist was running helter-skelter mustering support for the Sikhs. He was seen interacting with lawyers, families of militants and the militants themselves whenever he had an opportunity to do so.

I had a brief association with him. Whenever I met him, he used to say, "your party (Shiromani Akali Dal (Amritsar) has a lot of potential, but somehow is not able to catch the bull by its horns". He wanted me to "come on his side". He wanted me to quit politics and take up serious human rights activism. It is sad, that now that I am keen to do so, he is no more.

Not many people would know that despite having a house in Delhi, Ram Narayan Kumar would live for months in a hotel room so that he could complete his book on the Sikhs without disturbance. I am sure there are a few handful who know what risks he undertook to familiarise himself with all aspects of the Sikh struggle.

On the Passing of a Great Man, True Friend, Inspired Soul
Cynthia K. Mahmood

The WSN presents, humbly and proudly, both at the same time, this tribute and personal remembrance by Cynthia K. Mahmood, celebrated scholar on Sikh issues and one of Ram Narayan Kumar’s co-travellers on the path to seek an egalitarian world. Mahmood is Associate Professor of Anthropology and Senior Fellow, Joan B. Kroc Institute for International Peace Studies, University of Notre Dame, US. Exclusive to the World Sikh News...click here to read


Notwithstanding some people's doubts and cynicism, the Sikhs will certainly remember you for the monumental work that you have done in spearheading the Committee for Information and Initiative on Punjab. Last year, around this time, Ram Narayan Kumar and Ashok Aggarwal of CIIP came to Chandigarh and declared that they would, now “focus on legal research, besides building of clarity and solidarity on the issues like the principles of liability, in understanding aggregated violations, which the matter of cremations encompasses, and in developing standards to legally capture and quantify suffering, damages and losses for the purpose of evolving standards of reparation”.

Contemporary history of the Sikhs will not be complete without reference to your work in action and your academic inputs in the writing of Reduced To Ashes: The Insurgency and Human Rights in Punjab co authored by Amrik Singh, Ashok Agrwaal and Jaskaran Kaur. This compilation at a time when the whole country was not willing to touch the Sikhs with a barge pole and the international community was found wanting in supporting or even taking up the case of the Sikhs, speaks volumes for your commitment to the cause of fighting state impunity.

There will be some who will contest your contention that the issue of Sikh sovereignty was used by the State to divert attention from real issues of democracy, constitutional safeguard and citizens' rights, but there will none to doubt your steadfastness in upholding human rights and the search for truth and nothing but the truth.

Rest in Peace, friend of the Sikhs

The Ultima Ratio
Ram Narayan Kumar

The World Sikh News deeply mourns the death of Ram Narayan Kumar, a friend of the Sikh community and of all those who believed in human beings' fundamental right to a dignified life. His efforts at fighting the brutality of state suppression of armed conflicts in Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, Northeast India, Nepal and other parts of the subcontinent shall be remembered for ever and serve as inspiration to many. We reproduce here a piece that Kumar wrote as a Preface to his book The Sikh Struggle, published by Chanakya Publications, Delhi, in 1990.

Anti-Sikh riots in Delhi following Mrs. Gandhi’s assassination by two of her Sikh body guards on 31 Oct. 1984 gave me the first traumatic insight into the bane which Hindu India could become to its religious minorities. The assassination itself was a riposte to the army assault on the GoldenTemple in Amritsar in June 1984, ordered by Mrs. Gandhi to wipe out the Sikh rebels ensconced inside, under the leadership of Bhindranwale, the apostle of Sikh separatism. Besides taking - according to Sikh estimates - around four thousand lives, the assault had reduced to rubble the Akal Takht, the symbolic seat of Sikh temporal authority inside the temple complex, built by Guru Hargobind during Mughal days in defiance of the Delhi Takht.
The Delhi riots after the assassination were not so much spontaneous as systematically orchestrated. Getting involved with a group formed in Delhi immediately after the outbreak of the mayhem to rescue and rehabilitate the victims, I became acquainted with the organization of the violence which claimed three thousand innocent Sikh lives in six days. I heard eyewitness accounts of how the rioters in gangs of two hundred or three hundred led by Congress bosses, with policemen looking on, had swarmed into Sikh houses, hacking the occupants to pieces, chopping off the heads of children, tying Sikh men to tires set aflame with kerosene, burning down the houses alter sacking them. The “rehabilitation camp’ that I had helped set up in Shakkarpur, a trans-Yamuna locality of Delhi, housed two thousand refugees, among them a large number of widows and children with nightmarish memories.

The demand for an independent Sikh state as the ultima ratio of their frustrated desire for greater autonomy within a genuinely federalistic Indian State will impress us as less unfeasible if we remember that the present array of states in the Indian subcontinent is an artefact whose ephemeral validity is suggested by great fluidity of lines on the political map of the subcontinent in the past.

The Delhi violence has been documented by the Peoples Union for Civil Liberties and the Peoples Union of Democratic Rights in their joint report - Who are the Guilty? -which mentions the names of sixteen Congress politicians, thirteen police officers and one hundred and ninety eight others, accused by survivors and eyewitnesses of responsibility for the carnage. Early in January 1985, journalist Rahul Bedi of the Indian Express and Smitu Kothari of the PUCL moved the High Court of Delhi demanding a judicial inquiry on the strength of this documentation. Justice Yogeshwar Dayal kept the petition dangling for a few weeks and finally dismissed it with a comment about “those busybodies out for publicity, who poke their nose into all matters and waste the valuable time of the judiciary!”

When shortly after the pogrom, the Congress party, riding on the wave of Hindu sentiments against Sikhs, had secured an unprecedented popular mandate, the Sikhs understood that the Hindu democratic sanction of the genocide would ensure that the instigators and participants would not be called to account. As if to confirm the point, the new Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi inducted into his cabinet several of the main suspects of the organization of the slaughter.

The behaviour of the government added moral verve to the Sikh separatist ambitions. The police took to an extra-judicial approach by torturing and killing suspected separatists in their custody, with courts refusing to take action against the guilty officials. The mainstream press too toed the line of the establishment. Anti-terrorist campaigns in Punjab received imprimatur as cover stories, with officials being quoted: “For one innocent person killed by terrorists, the police will kill ten of them.” News on the situation in Punjab consisted of little more than the reproduction of official statements on terrorists killing and alternatively being killed: Investigative journalism conveying critical background information would have been “unpatriotic”.

Knowing from my earlier experiences as a social activist of the chasm that separates Indian reality from Indian make-believe, of the callous disregard of those who count for those who don’t, I decided to document violation of human rights in Punjab, traveling in the state from March 1985 when I became free from other compulsions. The picture of atrocities that emerged before my eyes was so distressing that I found myself overwhelmed to the exclusion of interest in other aspects of the Sikh problem. However, through my personal contact with knowledgeable Sikhs, I came to realize that a report on official atrocities alone would leave little scope for a rational understanding of the roots of the turmoil in Punjab.

Pressed by these considerations, I decided to extend the scope of my intended report by (focusing) on the history of the Sikhs in the perspective of their present struggle. For what at first sight might appear as haphazard, irrational and unjustified in Sikh aspirations and behaviour, acquired new meaning if one read it in terms of the birth and evolution of their community, the distinct features of their religion, and most of all their earlier attempts and ordeals of national self-assertion. The demand for an independent Sikh state as the ultima ratio of their frustrated desire for greater autonomy within a genuinely federalistic Indian State will impress us as less unfeasible if we remember that the present array of states in the Indian subcontinent is an artefact whose ephemeral validity is suggested by great fluidity of lines on the political map of the subcontinent in the past. If there is a recurring pattern in pan-Indian history, it is the cyclic emergence of ultimately self-serving imperial structures again broken by the political self-assertion of vigorous minority-nations. I hope that (my) attempt(s) would promote better understanding of the Sikh aspirations and their struggle among peoples of India and abroad.

1 July 2009

Attachments - Sikh Philosophy Network

    

I heard this is in Katha. I apologize for the mistakes in my translation, but here are the basics.

1. "Dekha thi Sikhi - The type of Sikhi you take on because you see someone else do it. "Dekh" = To see. This one does not last very long. Guruji does not accept this ("parvaan") type of Sikhi.

2. "To Get Something From Guruji" Sikhi - Gianiji called this "Hirs thi Sikhi". This is where one tries to please the Guru to get something done from Him. All other methods have failed, why not go to Gurdwara and do some Seva, maybe I get what I want. Guruji does not accept this ("parvaan") type of Sikhi either.

3. "Kauf thi Sikhi" - "Kauf" fear. The fearful Sikhi. Somebody told you that you must take Amrit, otherwise something will happen. Very rampant in India a while ago. People where so scared, that they would ask where an Amrit Sanchaar was being held.

4. "Sidak thi Sikhi" - This is the type of Sikhi undertaken by a Sikh that is without any pressure, fear, or greed. It is simple done to set one's life in accord in this world and the next. Guruji accepts this Sikhi. Gianiji mentions all the martyrs in the Sikh faith who never gave up on it no matter what punishment they had to endure.

5. "Prem thi Sikhi" - "Prem" = Love. This was given to Bhai Nand Lal Ji. This type of Sikhi, Guruji accepts as well.

Reference: Sant Giani Avtar Singh Ji - Gur Sikhi Ki Hai

KUALA LUMPUR: The Sikh Community in Malaysia which narrates the history of the Sikhs in the country was launched at Crowne Plaza Mutiara here recently.

More...

About Us

Established in 1999, Khalsa Aid is an international non-profit aid and relief organization founded on the Sikh principles of selfless service and universal love. Khalsa Aid is a UK Registered Charity (#1080374) with the UK Charities Commission and also has volunteers in North America & Asia. Khalsa Aid has provided relief assistance to victims of disasters, wars, and other tragic events around the world.

Khalsa Aid would like to thank all individuals and Gurdwaras who have donated so generously to make the relief programs possible, a special thanks to Wolverhampton Sikh community through Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara, Sedgly Street for their wonderful and continuous support.

How it started



I was a committee member of Singh Sabba Gurudwara Slough Executive committee from 1998-1999 (never been in any Gurudwara committee since but strongly recommend everyone should be in a committee at least once in their life). The forthcoming tri-centenary of the Khalsa was the main discussion point in most meetings. There were many opinions as to what was the best way to mark the 300th birth of the Khalsa. I was very adamant within myself that something good should rise to mark this historical occasion which not only got the Sangat (Sikh Community) involved but the whole world should be aware of this momentous occasion in the Sikh history. At the time of the celebrations across the UK (also the world) there was a very ****** war in Kosovo and every news bulletin carried the terrible pictures of the refugees struggling to cross the cold and mountainous border to reach a safer and peaceful Albania. The tide of refugees was a never ending tale of suffering and hardship. So I thought to myself that there was so much food at the Khalsa celebrations yet only 1700 miles away there were people fighting for a loaf of bread! I was reading a national newspaper when I read about a small group who were organising an aid convoy to Albania. The inspiration from Bhai Ghaniya Ji and SARBAT THE BHALLA (well being of all) came rushing into my mind and at that moment Khalsa Aid was born.

I spoke to my friend Jatinder Singh about it and he promptly got on to his computer to publicise Khalsa Aid and by the next day I had phoned the group from the newspaper to join them to deliver aid to the needy in Albania from the Sikh community. The Sangat was extremely generous in donating food, money etc and within 2 weeks we were on our way with 2 trucks and a van load of aid to Albania. The rest is history!! Since 1999 Khalsa Aid has provided relief to many people suffering from earthquakes, Tsunami etc. The unpaid volunteers have helped to make Khalsa Aid a global relief agency and from the whole committee we thank them for their input and dedication.

We still have a very long way to go and through your generous support I am sure we can continue to offer assistance to the needy around the world.

Ravinder Singh Sidhu
Chairman/Founder
Khalsa Aid

Our Work

Khalsa Aid (KA) is primarily a humanitarian relief agency, based on the teachings of the Sikh Gurus who preached well being of all humanity. Since the launch of KA in 1999 we have provided aid in many different disasters, this has only been possible due to the generosity of the Sikh community worldwide but mostly funded by the UK based Sikhs. The idea behind KA has been to provide cross border humanitarian relief and also to raise awareness of global relief and development work.

There are many obstacles in relief work but the main one is corruption especially in the developing world. It's very frustrating and unfortunate that during any disasters there will be people trying to make a 'fast buck' out of misery of the already downtrodden victims. We at Khalsa Aid have never given cash to any groups or individuals but have carried out our own assessments by our relief team and then appointed local contractors and suppliers. We believe that our donors expect us to be diligent and responsible for every penny that they donate.

Attachments - Sikh Philosophy Network

 

Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) proposal to designate any knife that opens using a spring- or release-assisted mechanism a switchblade, thus barring its import into the United States, has provoked outrage on Capitol Hill as well as among sportsmen organizations and knifemakers.


"This classification could render millions of law-abiding knife owners in violation of the law and expose major market retailers, manufacturers, dealers and importers subject to possible federal felony charges, and could drive domestic manufacturers and importers out of business, potentially costing thousands of jobs," Rep. Bob Latta (R-KY) wrote in a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano.


More than 80 House members from both sides of the aisle signed the letter, reports CQ Politics.


At issue is a proposed rule from early May, where CBP's Office of Regulations and Rulings published its decision to revoke earlier decisions, which allowed "certain knives with spring- or release-assisted opening mechanisms" as admissible under the Switchblade Knife Act.
Upon review, the letter noted, "[i]t is now CBP’s position that knives incorporating spring- and release-assisted opening mechanisms are prohibited from entry into the United States pursuant to the Switchblade Knife Act."


Jenny Burke, a CBP spokeswoman, told CQ Politics that the agency's new rules clarify previously conflicting rules.



The Switchblade Knife Act of 1958 defined a switchblade as "any knife having a blade which opens automatically - (1) by hand pressure applied to a button or other device in the handle of the knife, or(2) by operation of inertia, gravity, or both." The law banned the manufacture, transportation, and distribution of switchblades inside the United States.


The proposal, reports CQ Politics, has angered not only knifemakers and traditional sportsmen groups, but the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA). Much like Latta, the NRA believes the new rules would make hundreds of millions of knives illegal.
Moreover, Latta argues that the new rules violates the law's original intent.
"The intent of this regulation is to re-interpret the word 'inertia' so as to cover all knives using a spring (even a Boy Scout knife or multi-tool has one that maintains a knife's inherent bias toward closure) and contradicts the intent of Congress," he said in a press release.



The Joplin Independent reports CBP's new rules also contradicts its' previous rulings as to what constitutes a switchblade.


The redefinition reverses their ruling made late in 2004 allowing Friskars to import"utilitarian" knives for use by what they defined as a "wide assortment of people including fishing and hunting enthusiasts, electricians and repairmen" whom they contended needed a knife that they could open with one hand. It also negates a ruling in May 2006 for Columbia River Knife and Tool in which it was determined that their knives operating with a "slight spring action" were admissible since they were defined as "utilitarian" knives.


And while the new rules only restrict the import of knives deemed swithblades, knifemakers fear the precedent could spread into the domestic marketplace and run afoul of the interstate commerce restrictions of the Switchblade Knife Act. Under the law, "[w]hoever knowingly introduces, or manufactures for introduction, into interstate commerce, or transports or distributes in interstate commerce, any switchblade knife," can be fined or imprisoned or both.


According to The Washington Times, Latta and Rep. Walt Minnick (D-ID) failed to block the new rule in the House. Opponents of the measure, including Doug Ritter, executive director of Knife Rights Inc., say they will shift their efforts to the Senate to defeat the new rule.


Comments regarding the new rule ended last Monday, meaning the rules will go into effect by late July.

Attachments - Sikh Philosophy Network

 

Tenth Sikhtoons Caption Contest now open

July 2nd, 2009 by Vishavjit Singh


Bollywood is getting ready to capture 1980's Punjab for you with an upcoming film featuring Sanjay Dutt as KPS Gill and Amitabh Bachchan as a Punjab police officer.

Sanjay Dutt and Amitabh Bachchan to play 1980's Punjab cops - Sawf News (June 29, 2009)
Munnabhai chala Khalistan! - Times of India (June 29, 2009)

SUBMISSION RULES

Its Quite Simple!
Enter a catchy MOVIE TITLE to complete the poster above for a chance to get published on Sikhtoons.com and win a

Eco-Friendly Sikhtoons Tote Bag featuring one of the most popular Sikhtoon.
The winning entry will be selected by the creator of Sikhtoons.com

DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION - JULY 17th, 2009

Inspiration & Approach

We believe the values and principles that were revealed to the Ten Nānaks are worth conserving. And as educators, we believe the most effective solutions are consistent with those principles and values. We believe that principles have consequences, but that those principles must be promoted with determination. So, we need to constantly develop innovative ways to share our ideas to draw solutions to contemporary problems (both intra and extra Sikh community) from the ideas, principles and traditions that make Sikhs and Sikhī great. We need to generate solutions consistent with our beliefs and impart them first to the Sikh populations. Then, share them with community organizations, governing bodies, human rights and social justice forums, human development institutions, the news media and others. These solutions must be built on our culture’s spiritual, economic, political and social heritage to produce a safer, stronger, freer, more prosperous Sikh Nation. And a world community free from mental, spiritual, and physical slavery.


We strive to interpret Gurmat. The term gurmat is often used to describe the Gurū’s way, literally the wisdom of the Gurū. Gurmat is the confluence of bānī, tvārīkh and rahit, i.e., scriptural directives, historical precedents, and code of ethics. The bānī celebrates Gurū Granth Sāhib as the epitome of Sikh heritage that embraces only those parts of the universal cultures that have the potentialities to be generous, sublime and impartial, and admits no hegemonic intrusion that may disturb the flow of its spiritual creativity. The tvārīkh comprises of those traditions that cherish the prophet-genius of the Gurū, the one who takes an individual from ignorance to enlightenment. It also borrows insights from the lives of the Sikhs raised by the Gurū. The rahit encompasses the wholeness of life and then raises its myriad forms to a level of transcendental purity. It is unimpaired freedom of person and soul where the paradoxical segments of life (e.g., war and peace) find a level of naturalness. Additionally, we use the synergy of other faiths, traditions, thoughts, and philosophies that further the drive to realize the divine potential within each individual as long as they do not contradict the Gurmat traditions.

We believe the earnest pursuit of this institutional mission can have a strong effect on the course of higher awareness. We attempt to provide platform for intensive dialogue in a stimulating setting where a commitment to excellence is expected and the full realization of human potential is pursued. They include a wide variety of experiences, making their own contribution toward the balanced development. Such a preparation will be capable of meeting challenge and change in family life, social relationships, civic duty, and service to humanity.

Mission & Values

The Sikh Research Institute is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization seeking to develop a principle-driven community by protecting the core and enlarging the resource pool.


Mission
The Sikh Research Institute’s mission is to facilitate training and development while inspiring Sikh values, create global awareness of Sikhī, and deliver solutions to the key challenges faced by the Sikh community.

Values

• Service - Improving lives and communities
By demonstrating an attitude of love and respect; by nurturing physical, mental,
and spiritual endurance

• Integrity - Being fair and honest
By keeping our word; transparency in all spheres; and doing what is right even
when nobody is looking

• Excellence - Exceeding expectations
By being innovative; having vision; giving 100%; and demonstrating competence

Protecting the Core

The Sikh Research Institute aims to develop a principle-driven community by protecting the core and enlarging the resource pool. Our efforts are divided into three focus areas: Training and Development, Global Awareness, and Strategic Solutions. All programs and projects strive to develop and share a positive Sikh perspective. The Sikh Research Institutes strengthens individuals and builds communities by enhancing leadership skills and endorsing community action. All development initiatives attempt to weave diversity, multiculturalism, and acceptance into the fabric of civil society.


Facilitating Training and Development
The growth and development of the community at-large can only occur by growing and developing the individuals which makeup the community. With this in mind, the Sikh Research Institute organizes and facilitates numerous educational forums focused on distinct segments of the population.


Creating Global Awareness
The lack of global awareness of the Sikh faith and people is a growing concern for the Sikh community. In order to increase awareness, the Sikh Research Institute makes it a priority to deliver lectures, host discussions, and engage in interactive dialogue with the media.


Delivering Strategic Solutions
Complex key challenges exist in all communities. The community’s key challenges require thoughtful research and analysis in order to present relevant, long term solutions. The Sikh Research Institute is working on thoughtful research and analysis in order to present relevant, long-term solutions. Further, the Institute is committed to facilitating these solutions as part of the community.

Attachments - Sikh Philosophy Network