Kin of traders from Fourth Sikh Guru’s era ‘ignored’ by SGPC
A handful of shopkeepers who carried on with the legacy of their ancestors’ business around the Golden Temple and within the Walled City since the era of fourth Sikh Guru, Guru Ram Das, were a dejected lot as the SGPC allegedly overlooked them by not inviting them to the Guru’s birth anniversary celebrations held recently.
Though the SGPC had extended invitations to some of the traders, many of them were ‘ignored’.
As per the sequences related to the occasion, Guru Ram Das had brought people from 52 trades and asked them to settle here with a view to establishing the base of the holy city.
In 2018, the SGPC had accorded special recognition to these traders, artisans and craftsmen whose ancestors were originally invited here by Amritsar’s founder and fourth Sikh Guru Ram Das. The SGPC’s research team had then identified carpenters, potters, thathehaars (utensil makers), tailors, sweet makers, dyers, gardeners, masons, painters, cloth merchants, cobblers, pansaaris, goldsmiths, washers, etc, but the practice was discontinued.
Ravinder Singh, who has been into the business of world famous ‘papad’ and ‘wadiyan’, said this time, the SGPC did not even bother to invite them.
“In 2018, we were specially invited, but later on this practice was discontinued. This time, we felt bad when we did not even get an invitation, which we used to get earlier,” he said.
Ravinder’s 13th generation is now into the same profession today. He said his grandfather used to tell that Guru Sahib had engaged two persons, Kalu and Nikka, who were proficient in making ‘papad’ and ‘wadian’.
“We were told that when the Parikrama of the Golden Temple was being constructed under the supervision of Guru Sahib, various volunteers performed ‘sewa’. In the food department, the ‘aalu’ (potato) vegetable was being prepared when Kalu and Nikka approached with the ‘wadian’ they had prepared. They had suggested to mix ‘wadian’ in the ‘aalu’ dish which made it sumptuous and Guru Sahib had honoured them. Since then, ‘wadian’ has remained popular among people,” he said.
Similarly, Sarbjeet Singh, who also deals in papad-wadian, is the 10th generation which have continued with the ancestral profession. He said his father Ajinder Singh was invited once in 2018 only.
The next generations of Bhai Gyan Singh Nakash, who does engraving and etching work at the Golden Temple complex, also could not be ignored. Among his present generation, Satpal Singh Danish owns his shop, near the Golden Temple, which showcases painting, photography and calligraphy.
His father GS Sohan Singh, too, was a known painter. He has painted portraits of Gurus, many of which were enshrined at the Central Sikh Museum in the Golden Temple.
Satpal said his late brother Surinder Singh was into graphics whereas his son Hardeep Singh is a Punjabi calligraphy expert. “Bhai Gyan Singh had done etching and engraving at the Golden Temple during the era of Maharaja Ranjit Singh. He was engaged for the Golden Temple for three decades then,” he said.
Satpal said in 2018, the initiative of giving honour to the present generation was taken by the SGPC’s former chief secretary Dr Roop Singh. “After that, no one took any interest in this direction. We own a shop located just at the gate of the SGPC headquarters. SGPC officials did come and gave us an invitation just for namesake only. Otherwise, they never bothered about being in touch with us,” he said.
Got special recognition in 2018
In 2018, the SGPC had accorded special recognition to these traders, artisans and craftsmen whose ancestors were originally invited here by Amritsar's founder and fourth Sikh Guru Ram Das. The SGPC's research team had then identified carpenters, potters, thathehaars (utensil makers), tailors, sweet makers, dyers, gardeners, masons, painters, cloth merchants, cobblers, pansaaris, goldsmiths, washers, etc, but the practice was discontinued.
