HAZUR SAHIB(Nanded): Diwali night, which is celebrated as 'Bandi Chod Diwas' (release of prisoners, wherein the 6th Sikh Master, Guru Hargobind, Takht Sachkhand Sri Hazur Abchalnagar Sahib helped the release of 52 Rajas of hill states from the Gwalior prison from Mughal emperor Jehangir's captivity) by the Sikh community, saw arrival of a massive jatha (group) in Nanded from Punjab in truckloads of devotees, creating a flutter in the town.
These were the devotees who had aspired to reach here on Tuesday night to celebrate the festival at the sacred Takht Sachkhand Hazur Sahib, on the auspicious occasion of 300th Guru-ta Gaddi Diwas.
The huge tented enclosures—spread across 20 odd camp sites all around Nanded, which had stood empty all these days, triggering off apprehensions of low turn out, started humming with activity by evening as the administration got busy making preparation for the arrival of guests, who came streaming in, in countless number of trucks.
Devotees, meanwhile, made a beeline for the Sachkhand Gurdwara which was decked up with decorative lights, which also covered the entire newly made gurdwara complex and continued across the roads outside, creating a magical night for the devout.
Inside, people sat all around the Gurdwara complex, making their own small circles of candles and earthen lamps, when they could not gain access inside due to the unprecedented turnout of followers. A huge TV screen, beaming images of the scene inside, was put out on one side for the benefit of all those who waited for their turn outside.
Gatka teams performed their martial art outside the gurdwara on Tuesday evening, which was witnessed by scores of devotees. "After the Guru-ta Gaddi diwas, we would be organizing the 2-day Khalsa games here, to showcase the traditional games of he Sikh community, including Gatka competitions and Kabaddi, wrestling etc," SGPC chief, Avtar Singh Makkar said.
Makkar would be arriving on Wednesday, accompanied by Punjab CM, Parkash Singh Badal and other leader from Punjab. The Punjab Yatri Niwas, which is funded by the Punjab government, is still under completion, but construction work was taking place at a brisk pace to get a few rooms ready.
For the Guru-ta-Gaddi celebrations committee headed by former DGP P S Pasricha, it was a day of hectic activities when all security plans for the arrival of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh were finalized. The PM would be arriving on October 30, to celebrate the day when 300 years ago, the tenth Sikh Guru Gobind Singh ordained that the Guru Granth Sahib, the Sikhs' holy book, would be the perpetual guru of the community, hence forth.
Nearly 7000 cops fanned across the city, assisted by over 3000 more colleagues from the state reserve police, the bomb squads and the quick response teams (QRTs). Vehicular entry on the roads leading to the Gurdwara complex has been stopped and the devotees have been asked to reach the gurdwara complex by foot. The five gates to the gurdwara complex also have restricted entry with three being closed down for the next two days.
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