G.S. Sandhu
Col. Gurbirinder Singh Sandhu is a retired Colonel from Punjab.
From http://www.aapnapunjab.org
Education : Aitcheson College or Chiefs College, Lahore, 1942-1947 Senior Cambridge, Lawrence School Sanawar, Shimla Hills,1948-1951
Profession: Joined the National Defense Academy (known then as JSW) in June 1953 and was commissioned in the Indian Army in June 1957. During service held various command and staff appointments. Saw action in the various wars against China, Pakistan and liberation of Goa. Was posted abroad to Vietnam and served with the United Nations Commission for Supervision and Control in Saigon during 1966-1967. Took premature retirement as Colonel in 1981 to manage personal property assets in Punjab.
Present Occupation: Began leading a campaign in October 2003 against the notorious Nihang Ajit Singh Poohla and his goons on learning about the nefarious activities and heinous crimes being committed by his gang. In the early 1990s Poohla was a Police Cat and up until recently had Z security. This criminal gang, due to its deep Police, criminal and political nexus, had a license to kidnap, torture, rape and kill any villager that stood up against them. Col Sandhu, initially organized the ex-servicemen from the Majha area (where Nihang Poohla was most active) to stand up against Poohla. This later became a mass movement once the fear created by Nihang Poohla diminished. The organization is known as the ‘Majha Ex-serviceman Human Rights Front’ of which he is the Chairman. In August 2004, Col Sandhu was successful in getting Nihang Poohla and eight of his associates jailed on numerous murder charges.
Since then, Col. Sandhu has continued his fight against social injustice, poverty and the drug/AIDS menace that is so rampant in rural Punjab. In January 2005, Col Sandhu started Aapna Punjab, a NGO, to formalize his fight against poverty and social injustice.
Under the umbrella of Aapna Punjab, he has started a grass-roots level campaign, called the 'Mai Bhago Fauj, to eradicate the drug/AIDS menace in rural Punjab. Since it is women, be it the mother, wife, daughter or sister who suffer the most due to this drug/AIDS menace, Col Sandhu is organizing the “Mai Bhago Fauj”, where mostly women are being enrolled and encouraged to report the existence of drug selling dens, and in the case the police do not act, to ‘ghero’ Police Stations and report the matter to higher authorities. The campaign has been named after Mai Bhago from Chabbal Village in District Amritsar who had ridiculed the 40 men (the Chali Mukte the Fourty Liberated Ones) from the area who had deserted Guru Gobind Singh at a crucial time when he was surrounded by Mughal forces in Anandpur Sahib.
Welfare centers for handicrafts and tailoring are also being setup where village women can make goods for sale and can learn such skills. As of August 2005 over ten Welfare Centers are operational with over 500 women enrolled.
Finally, Col Sandhu is making the villagers aware of the importance of education, particularly the importance of learning English, to aid hem in getting higher paying jobs. The foundation stone of an an English medium school at Village Pahuwind was laid on 27th January 2005, on the birthday of Saheed Baba Deep Singh and the school became operational in July 2006.
