Thursday | 16 January 2025 | Reg No- 06
বাংলা
   
Thursday | 16 January 2025 | Epaper

From Benapole to Amritsar

Published : Saturday, 19 May, 2018 at 12:00 AM  Count : 693
Chinmay Prasun Biswas
Remembering renowned American poet Robert Frost's lines - "The woods are lovely, dark and deep" - the highway was wide, smooth and clean. Speed of the jeep was nearly 100 kilometres per hour. Sitting inside, we only heard the noise of vehicles overtaking and crossing our jeep. I am talking of the road from Delhi to Amritsar. Recently I had an opportunity to travel to Delhi and Amritsar along with my family. Crossing Benapole border, where we had to stand in immigration queue for more than an hour, we went direct to Netaji Subhash International Airport, Kolkata.  The semi big aircraft of Jet Airways, with a capacity of around 250 passengers, took off just at scheduled 5-35 p. m. None of the captain or the cabin crews was Bengali. They spoke in Hindi and English.  Flying at an altitude of 38, 000 metres the aircraft landed on terminal 3 of  Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi right on time at 8-05 p. m.
 As previously arranged, Harpal Singh, a Sikh of around 40 years of age, was waiting for us with his Toyota Innova air-conditioned jeep at gate no. 2.  Though I never knew him earlier but had conversation with him through video call and there was no problem recognizing him.
He himself was the driver and also the owner of the vehicle and at the same time partner of a travel agency.  Crossing 16 kilometers we reached Hotel Singh Palace at Karol Bagh, a famous area of Delhi. I was a first timer in Delhi but due to academic reason the name Karol Bagh was known to me. During late 1970s and early1980s all our text and note  books of English literature for honours and master's  classes were imported from India and some of those were published from Karol Bagh. For this reason I had a mental affinity with that place and felt very pleased to reach there. Karol Bagh is an aristocratic residential area and at the same times a hotel zone of Delhi. Within five minutes' walk I came across at least 50 standard type hotels. All the houses are very artistically designed but it appeared   unusual to me that there is no provision of garage at any house or hotel. Vehicles of residents are parked on roadside.
After night halt at Delhi we started for Amritsar next morning by that jeep of Harpal Singh. More than an hour was required to get out of Delhi.  Distance of Amritsar from Delhi is 460 kilometres. The seven lane road is smooth like a mosaic floor. 7 lanes may sound unusual but that is the reality. Besides 3 lanes for big vehicles there is a small lane at extreme left for motor cycles but no manually driven vehicle is allowed on that road. On that 460 kilometres road there is not a single speed breaker and vehicles run at a minimum speed of around 100 or more. Huge trucks are found plying on that road. Normal 6 wheelers are almost obsolete. 10 to 14 wheelers are easily seen. Even 18 wheelers are not rare.  
After short distance there are foot-over bridges because it is not at all possible to cross that wide and very busy road on foot.  Except 10 minutes at Ludhiana due to construction work of a flyover there was not traffic jam. There are several toll plazas but to avoid traffic jam number of toll plazas are more than number of lanes. At one place there are 20 toll plazas. On highways there are many dhabas (roadside restaurants) of both ordinary and aristocratic look but whatever be the nature of dhaba, the food is always hot and very tasteful and prepared instantly on order.
Punjab and Haryana are vegetarian states. Non vegetable restaurants are very rare and for four days we had to depend on hand made bread, Dhosa, vegetable and similar items. Thousands of acres of land full of green wheat plant and electric line are found on both sides of the highway. It is known that not only towns but all villages and agricultural land of these two states were brought under coverage of electric supply before 1970.
With intervals for breaks, breakfast and lunch at dhaba we reached Amritsar by afternoon. Main entrance of Amritsar is just like a model of the famous Golden Temple. Due to ahead of weekly holiday there was severe problem at parking spot near Golden Temple and Harpal had to park the jeep at the roof of third floor.
After checking in at Hotel Golden Heritage we were naturally very eager to visit the Golden Temple but as suggested by Harpal, our driver and guide, taking  rest ( though we were not at all tired) in hotel we entered into the Golden Temple  after evening  as it remains open round the clock. Our hotel was just at 3 minutes' walking distance from a main gate (the temple has four gates) of the Golden Temple. Entry is free of cost and open to all irrespective of caste and belief but without shoes and with a turban as it is a custom of the Sikhs. Everyday around 1,00,000 people  visit the Golden Temple and one lakh pair of shoes are to be preserved in the huge Juti Ghar ( shoe chamber) with hundreds of holes. As no one, other than Sikhs, use turbans, pieces of yellow and red clothes are preserved in baskets outside the main shrine. Before entering there, like all others, we washed our feet and tied those clothes on our heads. From outside and distance outer portion and the high clock tower can be seen but when inside, just after stepping down from a few stairs, all establishments become clearly visible. The central shrine is surrounded by a huge tank.  Or the other way round, it appears that the whole temple is floating on a vast tank full of water.
In reality, the legendary Golden Temple is simply a small part of a huge gurdwara complex, commonly known to Sikhs as Harmandir Sahib. As believed by Sikhs, any place, whether it is a room in a house or a separate building, where the Guru Granth Sahib ( the main religious book of the Sikhs) is installed and treated with due respect,  can be referred to as a Gurdwara which can easily be identified from  distance with its  tall flagpoles bearing the Nishan Sahib i.e. the Sikh flag. Among hundreds of Gurdwaras all over the world, Harmandir Sahib  at Amritsar is considered to be the largest one. Theologically and also to the visitors, centre  of attention and main place of attraction is the tank that surrounds the shinning central shrine because of a popular belief that the water has healing power. From inscription inside the temple it is known that the Golden Temple itself is a unique blend of Hindu and Islamic architectural work with an elegant bottom layer made of marble stone. The second level is very artistically designed with gold panel and the dome is gilded with 750 kilograms of gold. For this reason it is called the Golden Temple. At night reflection of the golden tomb and the entire complex creates an incomparable radiance in ripple of the tank.
The original sanctum is in the middle of the tank connected by a wide walkway. It takes minimum 3 hours to enter into that building because the line of devotees and visitors is never ending.
All gurdwaras have a langar hall  where people can eat vegetarian food free of cost. The Golden Temple is not an exception. Two dining halls inside Harmandir Shahib have a combined capacity of serving meal to 5000 people at a time.  Thousands of visitors take  thali ( rectangular steel plate with four or five chambers for keeping  food items) and glass, sit  squat on  stone  floor and after having  meals deposit  the plates and glasses  to wash corner.  Thousands of plates, glasses, bowls and spoons are being washed neatly leaving no dirt particle on it. Almost all the visitors take at least one meal at langar out of curiousity or of religious zeal or simply to gather an experience. Wandering inside the Golden Temple for around two hours we entered into the langar hall for dinner. Meals at langar are simple but very tasteful and nourishing consisting of bread, rice, lentil, vegetable and kheer.
Maintaining the langar in the Golden Temple is a huge task. As per most conservative count 50, 000 people take their meals every day. During festival days the number hikes up to 1, 00,000.  It is never possible to prepare bread for such huge number of devotees round the clock manually. To meet such huge demand machine has been installed. Watered flour is being poured at the starting point of the huge machine consisting of four parts. Making small flour balls, flattening the balls  in the shape of  bread, baking everything is  done  mechanically  but other functions  viz/ dressing vegetable, cooking rice, lentil and kheer, serving food and water, washing are done manually. After every round of meal the entire hall is wiped at an interval of 15-20 minutes.  Unless seen with own eyes it is impossible to believe how such a herculean task is being managed so neatly, properly and spotlessly.  
Huge work force is required for all these purposes.  Hundreds of people remain engaged in doing these works. The Golden Temple has 300 regular staffs which are very insufficient in comparison to actual requirement but volunteers play a very important role. They work for an hour or a few hours or for a day or more and leave. Others join but the work never stops and is never interrupted. Anybody can work as volunteer at any time.
Besides langar, inside the Golden Temple there are three spots for supplying pure drinking water to visitors. Steel bowls are filled with water, placed on racks like a shop; people drink it and place the empty bowl at another part of the rack. Volunteers wash the bowls and refill. Among volunteers there are kids of even 5 years. They are doing it may be for acquiring virtue or just to follow their elders or as a part of play but such philanthropic activity is very rare outside though it should be followed everywhere.
Another important part of the Golden Temple is Akal Takht ( centre of authority in Sikhism) which  is also the headquarters of Shiromani Akali Dal (Supreme Akali Party), the leading political party of the Sikhs  in Punjab. It also means throne of the Timeless (God).   Akal Takht  passes hukum  (decisions)  on matters related to Sikhism and the solidarity of the Sikhs. According to Sikhism there are five Takhts - in Anandpur, Patna, Nanded, Talwandi Sabo and Amritsar. All those are major pilgrimage sites in Sikhism but the Akal Takht in the Golden Temple complex is the most important one.
As headquarter of a political party the Golden Temple has a sad record also. Since the days of colonial rule in India - Sikhs had been demanding for a separate state named Khalistan (the land of Pure as meant in Punjabi). Gradually they turned extremist during 1970s and early part of 1980s under militant leadership of Sant Harchand Sing Langowal and Jarnal Singh Vindranwale.  Their  activities were conducted from Akal Takht in the Golden Temple but considering their demand illegal and their activities anti state, the Indian government conducted a military operation named Operation Blue Star on 6th June, 1984 to suppress them  and  through bloodshed  Khalistan movement came to a pathetic  end. The Akal Takht was heavily damaged. Indian government repaired it but the Sikhs refused to use the scarred building and rebuilt it by themselves. Bullet hit spots on the wall are clearly marked with colour and   clearly visible which is an important place of attraction for visitors.  
The second attraction at Amritsar is Jalianwalabagh  where, as a consequence of Rowlatt  Act, a massive killing ( the Amritsar massacre) occurred  on 13th April, 1919 under the command of  Reginald Edward Harry Dyer, the then police chief of Punjab.  Afterwards, in an official report, it was published that 379 persons were killed.  Here also the bullet marks are neatly maintained and statue of Udham Singh (who, with a determination to take revenge, shot Dyer dead in London in 1940 and was hanged subsequently) is honourably preserved.  Next year is the centenary of that massacre and due preparations are being taken to observe the incident.
Amritsar is a town of tourists. Hotels and restaurants,  shopping malls, curio shops, regular trade and commerce, transport everything depend on around 100000 tourists coming to visit the Golden Temple and Jalianwalabagh daily. On holidays the rush runs high and on festival days it mounts to peak. Without prior arrangement it is difficult to arrange accommodation in hotels. Thousands of people lie on wide and long corridors of the Golden Temple and use free wash rooms. For us language is a problem there because except Hindi it is difficult to move and during stay at Amritsar everyone has to be a vegetarian which was not at all a problem for us. However, tour to Amritsar was very enjoyable and will remain ever memorable.

The writer is a former Commissioner of Taxes








LATEST NEWS
MOST READ
Also read
New Year Countdown
The little new year
SONG OF A HANDKERCHIEF
Geoffrey Chaucer: Father of English Poetry
Birds on wings: emblem of beauty and freedom
Celebrating Rumi
Bruce and the Spider
Tribute to Jane Austen
Editor : Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury
Published by the Editor on behalf of the Observer Ltd. from Globe Printers, 24/A, New Eskaton Road, Ramna, Dhaka.
Editorial, News and Commercial Offices : Aziz Bhaban (2nd floor), 93, Motijheel C/A, Dhaka-1000.
Phone: PABX- 41053001-06; Online: 41053014; Advertisement: 41053012.
E-mail: district@dailyobserverbd.com, news©dailyobserverbd.com, advertisement©dailyobserverbd.com, For Online Edition: mailobserverbd©gmail.com
🔝
close