Category:News

Avtar Singh Makkar is new SGPC president

Avtar Singh Makkar was Wednesday unanimously elected as the 39th president of the Shiromani Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) - the mini-parliament of Sikh religion.

All elected SGPC members attended the election that took place at the SGPC headquarters in Amritsar's Golden Temple complex.

The election of Makkar, a retired Life Insurance Corporation (LIC) officer, came as a surprise for most SGPC members. Makkar, who hails from Ludhiana, was a senior vice president of the SGPC in the outgoing set-up.

His unanimous election was announced by outgoing SGPC president Bibi Jagir Kaur.

Makkar's election shows that Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) president Prakash Singh Badal, a former Punjab chief minister, has tried a new experiment by putting up a completely new face to head the most powerful Sikh politico-religious body.

The SGPC manages hundreds of gurudwaras - Sikh religious shrines - spread across Punjab and has an annual budget of over Rs.1.8 billion.

After his election, Makkar, while thanking Badal, said he would ensure the smooth functioning of the SGPC.

The SGPC election this time was considered politically important as Punjab assembly polls are due in Feb 2007 and the SGPC is said to be controlling a large Sikh vote bank.

The SGPC had been plagued by controversy in recent years.

Despite becoming its first woman president, Bibi Jagir Kaur, who took charge in March 1999, had to relinquish office a year later after her name figured in the murder of her daughter Harpreet kaur.

Harpreet was found dead under mysterious circumstances at Phagwara in early 2000 after she married a boy of her choice secretly, which Jagir Kaur opposed.

Jagir Kaur was, however, re-elected president in September last year.

The court decision on Jagir Kaur in the murder trial is expected soon and that is one reason why SAD did not opt for her for a third term.

The 11-member SGPC executive committee was also announced Wednesday with delegates from Haryana being accommodated in the body.

Sukhdev Singh Bhaur was named as the SGPC general secretary.

ਯੂਨਾਈਟਿੱਡ ਪੰਜਾਬ!!!

ਦੋਹਾਂ ਪੰਜਾਬਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਛੇਤੀ ਤੋਂ ਛੇਤੀ ਮਹਿਜ਼ ਮਹਿਮਾਨ-ਨਵਾਜ਼ੀ ਵਾਲੀਆਂ ਗਲਵੱਕੜੀਆਂ ਤੋਂ ਅਗਾਂਹ ਲਂਘ ਕੇ ਭਰਾਵਾਂ ਵਾਲੀਆਂ ਬਗਲਗੀਰੀਆਂ ਵੱਲ ਤੇਜੀ ਨਾਲ ਕਦਮ ਵਧਾਉਣੇ ਚਾਹੀਦੇ ਨੇ। ਆਪਸੀ ਮਿਲਣੀਆਂ ਵੇਲੇ "ਮਹਿਮਾਨ ਆਝ ਨੇ" ਦੀ ਥਾਂ 'ਭਰਾ ਆਝ ਨੇ' ਕਹੋ, ਕਿਉਂਕੀ ਝਸ 'ਚੋਂ ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਖੂਨ ਦੀ ਸਾਂਝ ਦਾ ਜਲਵਾ ਨਜ਼ਰੀਂ ਪੈਂਦੈ।....

Punjab as it exists today is divided between two countries and broken into seven administrative units. Two of these political units are in Pakistan and the remaining five are in India.

The political make-up of the entire Greater (undivided) Punjab is currently as follows:

West Punjab (Pakistan)

1) Punjab Province: Area - 205,345sq km. Population: 72.85 million (1998 Census) Capital: Lahore

2) Islamabad: Area: 906sq km. Population: 805,325 (1998 Census) Islamabad serves as the national capital of Pakiatan.

East Punjab (India)

1) Punjab State: Area: 50,362sq km. Population: 24.29 million (2001 Census) Capital: Chandigarh

2) Haryana State: Area: 44,212sq km. Population: 21.08 million (2001 Census) Capital: Chandigarh

3) Himachal Pradesh: Area: 55,673sq km. Population: 6.08 million (2001 Census) Capital: Simla

4) Chandigarh (Union Territory): Area: 114sq km. Population: 900,914 (2001 Census) Chandigarh serves as the state capital of Punjab and Haryana.

5) Delhi (Union Territory): Area: 1483sq km. Population: 13.78 million (2001 Census) Delhi serves as the national capital of India.

www.UnitedPunjab.com ਯੂਨਾਈਟਿੱਡ ਪੰਜਾਬ.com

Balpreet Singh: I was treated like an al-Qaeda terrorist

Sunday 30th October, 2005

Ottawa, Canada (KP) - Balpreet Singh, an amritdhari gursikh who is currently a law student at the University of Ottawa, was removed from a VIA Rail train for the second time in a month. Saying he felt he was treated like a terrorist by rude and offensive VIA Rail representatives, Balpreet Singh is hoping to take this issue to the Ontario Human Rights Commission. On his way to Toronto, Balpreet Singh, 24, said he felt......... [Click http://www.sikhiwiki.org/index.php?title=BalpreetSingh_Kirpan_Issue_2005_Nov to Read More , a long documentary to read]