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Sikhs make Guinness size statement
with Blood
Gur Rahat Singh
 ANANDPUR
SAHIB: More than three hundred years after the tenth Sikh Master,
Guru Gobind Singh ji, founded the Khalsa amid the hilly terrains of
Sri Anandpur Sahib, this holy town once again gift wrapped another
great gift to the humanity from the Sikh community -- the world's
largest ever blood donation camp.
As long
serpentine queues of hundreds of donors on Hola Mohalla continued
till late Tuesday night, each over enthusiastic to stress Sikhism's
message of universal brotherhood and welfare of all (Sarbat Da Bhala),
blood unit count crossed the figure of 20,000 and could well have
touched 25,000, shattering the earlier Guinness Book record of
13,000 plus units collected in a single day.
Backed by Sri
Akal Takht Sahib and other Sikh temporal seats, and enjoying
patronage of more than a hundred Sikh organisations, the blood
donation drive broke all barriers of age, gender, caste and economic
status as young and old, poor and rich, men and women awaited
patiently their turn to make a statement with blood at a time when
much of it is being shed across the world in the name of religion.
"It is
remarkable that the Sikh community thought of such a grand sweeping
idea that not only sends a powerful message but also underlines how
at the end of the day human beings are equal. A unit of blood can
save the life of a child, an elderly, a low caste or a high caste,"
said Suzzane Able, an American photographer visiting India as a
tourist who had come to the camp to witness history in the making.
She was surprised to know that Sikhism does not recognize any caste.
"You have told me the best thing about the community. Now I know the
real significance of your motto of universal brotherhood," she said.
 At
a time when rest of India was busy playing Holi with colors or cow
dung, the Sikh community was making a statement with this drive.
25,000 units of blood in flat 24 hours was the target, and the
organizers, led from the front by Akal Purakh Ki Fauj outfit, had
made sure that all mandatory requirements of the administrators of
Guinness Records are fulfilled and cameras keep a record of all
donors, quality checks are stringent, medical care at its best and
safe blood keeping practices are followed.
With this blood
donation drive, the Sikhs beat the Sirsa dera's earlier effort to
collect 13,000 plus units on one day.
The sheer scale
of logistics was mind boggling as the camp spilled over on to two
lakh square feet of makeshift tents, 700 beds divided in 14 blocks
of 50 beds each, and averaging 2,500 donations in one hour. All this
effort was possible, thanks to an army of 8,000 volunteers, 3000
paramedical staff and 100 doctors deployed for the camp. Army
personnel from Jalandhar and Chandi Mandir were among the teams
collecting units.
Kiranjit Kaur
had not heard of the camp and had come visiting the Takht Sahib with
her parents. "I never attend the political rallies that happen at
the sidelines but I was mesmerized by the idea of the camp. Me and
my sister insisted about donating blood and our parents finally
agreed to stay over for the night. We have waited for six hours and
hopefully our turn will come," she said.
 Baljinder
Singh Maur said the camp has inspired him to become Amritdhari. "May
be it needed this camp to bring me the Guru's blessings," he said.
The Holla
Mohalla festival attracts lakhs of pilgrims from all over
Punjab
and the rest of the country and is the festival of truth, courage,
bravery and service. The milling crowds of Sikhs who came to know of
the camp added largely to the success of the effort, monitored for
Guinness record purposes.
Sikh enthusiasts
had come from, thanks to the massive mobilization campaign to ply
blood donors, as far as Maharashtra, UP, Uttarkhand, Jammu and
Kashmir and Haryana.
Jathedar of Sri
Akal Takht Sahib, Giani Gurbachan Singh, and Damdami Taksal's Harnam
Singh Dhumma were among the first few to donate blood to inaugurate
this mega blood donation camp at the Guru Teg Bahadur college
grounds that ended at 7 am Wednesday India time.
Donors also
included Jathedar of Takhat Sri Kesgarh Sahib Giani Tarlochan Singh,
former Akal Takht jathedar Prof. Manjit Singh, Punjab Minister
Bikram Singh Majithia and Akali Dal leader Kiranbir Singh Kang.
Jathedar of Takhat Sri Kesgarh Sahib Giani Tarlochan Singh performed
the ardas as the camp began..
11 March 2009
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