COMMUNITY


Bhagat Puran Singh death anniversary observed in Chicago

By Dr. Harjinder Singh Khaira

Chicago: Punjabi Heritage Organization (PHO) of Chicago and Sikh Religious Society (SRS), Palatine, observed 16th death anniversary (Barsi) of Bhagat Puran Singh, the founder of Pingalwara on August 3 at Gurdwara Sahib Palatine.
Addressing a huge congregation, Dr. Baldev Singh, a noted Sikh intellectual, did a slide show (Compassion & Service - Pathway to peace) which highlighted the importance of Seva and then further elaborated about Pingalwara achievements, accomplishments and projects undertaken by Pingalwara and the noble steps and works done by Bhagat Puran Singh. He concluded “Bhagat Ji’s life story is a saga of grit, determination, faith in the almighty and unending love for the suffering humanity.”
Explaining the life of Bhagat Ji and activities of the Pingalwara, Bhai Mohinder Singh Ji, Prof. Jaginder Singh Ramdev, Principal Sohan Singh, Dr. Jaswinder Singh Chawla, Dr. Balwant Singh Hansra paid tribute to a humanist, social activist, naturalist and environmentalist Bhagat Puran Singh. The congregation poured their donations generously for Pingalwara. A unanimous resolution was passed to nominate Bhagat Puran Singh name for the Noble Peace Prize.
At present Pingalwara is the home of more than 1500 patients. It has three more branches in Sangroor, Goindwal Sahib, Chandigarh and Jalandhar. It has established two schools in Buttar Kalan and Mananwala (Amritsar) for needy and poor students and one school is being run in a slum area. Pingalwara was established by late Bhagat Puran Singh, who dedicated all his life helping medically and debilitated sick patients, orphans and homeless people, the poor and the needy from all walks of life regardless of their religion, caste or creed. An exhibition displaying Bhagat Ji’s life and projects and Pingalwara activities was also organized and was well attended.
The success of this program would not have been possible without the tireless efforts of Jairam Singh Kahlon. He was instrumental in this noble cause. PHO Board members Micky Kahlon, Kirpal Singh Randhawa, Jaswinder Singh Sandhu, Lakhbir Singh Sandhu, Tony Sanghera, Mohinder Singh Rakalla, Narinder Pal Singh Marwaha, Tejinder Singh Minhas, Paramjit Singh Sangha, Hardial Singh Deol, Satnam Singh Aulakh, Gurmukh Singh Bhullar, Indermohan Singh, Surinder Singh Bhatia, and Dr. Harjinder Singh Khaira worked hard in observing the death anniversary of Bhagat Puran Singh.
PHO is a non-profit community organization dedicated to promote Punjabi cultural heritage, sports and social events in mid-western United States. For more information please write to Punjabi Heritage Organization, P. O. Box 2556, Palatine, IL 60078, and Email at info@phochicago.org or visit Web site:
www.phochicago.org