When the spread of COVID-19 was at its peak in 2020, nationwide lockdown compelled people to stay indoors. At that time, the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGMC) came to the rescue by lending a helping hand to those in need. As per a news report, the Delhi-based Gurudwara Bangla Sahib prepared and served food to more than 40,000 people across the capital city.
Mr. Harbir Singh, the then in-charge of langar, shared the details of langar Sewa saying, “ We are providing food to over 40,000 people every day through our kitchen.”
Langar Sewa for those in need
According to the reports, around 40 people used to come together at the gurudwara’s mega kitchen every day to prepare food. In addition to this, 20 volunteers had the responsibility of distributing the meals. Mr. Singh said that while preparing the food, the gurdwara used to take all necessary safety procedures and followed social-distancing norms. All the volunteers who cooked meals sanitized their hands properly before entering the kitchen.
The langar meals usually included rice, bread, sabzi, dal, and roti (also known as prasada in Punjabi). The gurudwara took all the necessary steps to make sure that they could feed as many people as possible. Mr. Singh said, “The stock with us can easily feed people till the lockdown period. And, besides the ration available with us, we are also ensuring to procure more ration in case of requirement arises."
During that time period, Gurudwara Bangla Sahib managed to serve meals to more than 4.5 lakh people who did not have any other option to feed themselves in just 12 days. They used an automatic bread machine that made the whole process of preparing food much more easier and efficient. Mr. Singh added to this by saying, “ The automatic machine available with us is capable of preparing bread from 1.5 quintals of wheat flour every hour, which minimizes the number of people involved in preparing the bread."
Before the lockdown, the gurudwara served between 60,000 and 100,000 meals per day, but the figure dropped to 40,000 meals per day during the lockdown. Since social distancing must be implemented, the number of helpers in the kitchen has decreased. However, the community tried its best with whatever resources were available.
Over the years, the Sikh community has always lent a helping hand to those in need, without any discrimination on the basis of religion, country, or region. The gurudwaras are always open to people and everyone is welcome for a good hearty meal. When times were tough, the followers of Sikhism stood tall and contributed selflessly to provide a sense of comfort, and eased the pain of lakhs of people. The langar Sewa continued to serve people across India, and abroad.