Dr Kharak Singh Memorial Lecture
The Institute of Sikh Studies (IOSS), Chandigarh organized the 1st Dr Kharak Singh memorial lecture on 5th December 2009 at the Gurudwara Singh Sabha, Industrial Area Phase 2, Chandigarh. The event was in memory of Dr Kharak Singh, a renowned Gurmat scholar and founder member of the IOSS.
The event commenced with melodious and soothing Shabad Kirtan rendered by Prof. Jagir Singh.
The memorial lecture was delivered by Dr. Gurbakhsh Singh USA, former Dean at Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. He recalled the day in December 1945 when as a student in Punjab Agricultural College and Research Institute, Lyallpur he had first met Dr. Kharak Singh. This first meeting left a lasting impression on his mind and was the beginning of a life-long association between the two. He also highlighted various Professional and Panthic contributions of Dr. Kharak Singh and then dwelt upon the valuable lessons which one can learn from the life of the great departed soul. He stressed on the role played by Dr. Kharak Singh as an organization builder and the various qualities which helped him succeed in that role. He also highlighted the various unfinished projects like standardized translation of Guru Granth Sahib, Sikh TV channel, Gurmat Prachar Institute etc which had been started by Dr. Kharak Singh and promised to work devotedly towards their successful completion.
Others who spoke on the occasion included S. Gurdev Singh IAS(Retd.), Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Kartar Singh, Bhai Ashok Singh Bagrian, Prof. Kulwant Singh and S. Naib Singh. The family of Dr. Kharak Singh donated a sum of Rs. 50,000/- to the IOSS.
Earlier S. Pritam Singh IAS(Retd.), President of the IOSS welcomed the audience and briefly spoke about the role played by Dr. Kharak Singh in inducting him as a member of the IOSS. He lamented the fact that the number of Sikh youth attending Gurudwaras was decreasing with every passing day and requested the various Gurudwara representatives to come up with suggestions on how to attract the youth back into the Gurudwaras. He promised them that the IOSS was willing to discharge any role assigned to it in this regard. He also informed the audience that the IOSS was donating a set of its publications to all the Gurudwaras in Chandigarh and Mohali.
[Report prepared by Ishwinder Singh, Exco member, Institute of Sikh Studies]
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