EcoSikh is based in Washington.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: EcoSikh, an organization dedicated to connect Sikh values and institutions with environment causes around the world, is calling on the Punjab state government to assist in making the city of Anandpur Sahib eco-friendly and environmentally sustainable.
The organization, which is based in Washington, is launching the Anandpur Sahib initiative just as the city plans to celebrate its 350th anniversary next year, on June 19. The city is considered to be one of the holiest in the Sikh religion, adding further weight and importance to the campaign.
In making the city more ecologically viable, EcoSikh hopes to install new, environmentally friendly systems for rainwater harvesting, waste water management, garbage disposal and sanitation, solar-based energy production, and pollution-free public transportation.
Additionally, EcoSikh wants to implement regulatory action over construction around religious sites in the city, in order to return the city to its “natural heritage and its original and tranquil atmosphere [that] should be protected for the coming generations.”
“Punjab Government should declare Anandpur Sahib plastic free and this declaration should happen before June 19th. All governmental agencies should enforce this law just as it is regulated in Chandigarh and neighboring state of Himachal Pradesh. Why can we not have similar initiatives in Punjab?” said Ranjodh Singh, Punjab Convener of EcoSikh, in a statement.
Dr. Rajwant Singh, President of EcoSikh in Washington, also weighed in on the initiative, saying that it’s important for the local community and the Sikh diaspora that the holy city is kept as clean and pure as possible. Singh also proposed using the land’s natural resources to create herbal and organic products.
“There is popular trend all over the world on herbal and alternate medicine and this area of economic development should be explored,” said Singh, in a statement. “Gurdwara Patalpuri has hundreds of acres of land under cultivation. This land can easily be converted for herbal production through organic methods. Turmeric, Aloe Vera, Amla are top commercial crops these days. A few acres of land for Turmeric can serve nearly all the Anandpur Sahib Gurdwaras and its langar needs. A very low cost food-processing unit can be established.”
EcoSikh was launched in 2009, with a strict five-year plan to commitment to making a difference in the environment. In November of that year, Sikh environmental leaders joined with religious leaders of the other major faiths – Baha’ism, Buddhism, Christianity, Daoism, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, Shintoism – at Windsor Castle in the UK for what was called by the UN as the “first major internationally coordinated commitment by the religions to the environment.”
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It’s a good thing they are doing. At a time where men are not concerned with anything but himself, such people are necessary for the world