Generosity, community on display at Vancouver's annual Vaisakhi parade

Naresh Shulka stood outdoors his enterprise Saturday afternoon, greeting members of the colourfully dressed crowds who had been celebrating Vaisakhi in Vancouver.

The doorways to his imported items store, Mom India, had been open to the hundreds of people that walked Foremost Road as a part of town’s annual Vaisakhi parade. The occasion celebrates the spring harvest within the Punjab area and components of Northern India. Additionally it is an essential day for Sikhs world wide, marking when Guru Gobind Singh created the Khalsa order and based the Sikh religion in 1699.

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Vaisakhi is well known in Sikh communities world wide, and is often held on both April 13 or 14.

Naresh Shulka, proprietor of Mom India on Foremost Road, has been taking part in Vancouver’s Vaisakhi parade because it started in 1978. Photograph by Sarah Grochowski /solar

“It appears like I’m welcoming individuals into my residence,” stated Shulka, whose former enterprise, Bombay Sweets, was one of many first within the five-block district now generally known as Vancouver’s Punjabi Market.

“I got here to Canada alone with simply $8 in my pocket, and I used to carry tight to each penny I earned,” stated Shulka, who emigrated from New Delhi when he was 16 years previous.

“However now that I’ve greater than sufficient, I need to share what I’ve with everyone.”

Annual Vaisakhi parade in Vancouver, BC Saturday, April 13, 2024. Hundreds of thousands of people attend the annual event which traditionally marks the beginning of the spring harvest season. (Photo by Jason Payne/ PNG) — Attendees take pleasure in snacks through the annual Vaisakhi parade in Vancouver. Photograph by Jason Payne /PNG

British Columbia’s Premier Dave Eby lauded the vacation, which he stated in a press release Saturday is a showcase of selflessness.

“Vaisakhi is a time for household and mates to collect in worship and celebration. Folks will pray at gurdwaras, take part in parades and attend different glad gatherings,” Eby continued.

“April can also be Sikh heritage month, an opportunity to recount the various contributions the Sikh neighborhood in B.C. — the biggest outdoors of India — has made to constructing our province. We have now all benefited.”

Saturday’s festivities, which started round 9 a.m. on the Khalsa Diwan Society Gurdwara on Ross Road, noticed numerous streets cordoned off to accommodate the hundreds of attendees strolling within the parade, referred to as nagar kirtan.

Volunteers from varied neighborhood teams and companies arrange tents alongside the route and provided tea, sweets and vegetarian dishes to passersby.

Shulka, who wore a lightweight gray go well with and matching head masking for the event, remembers being among the many first to arrange a stall for the inaugural Vaisakhi parade in 1978.

“When this district began, we individuals from India felt that we would have liked this space, to really feel secure in numbers, with our shared tradition. We thought we’d solely survive in a brand new nation if we had been collectively,” the 65-year-old stated.

“Now, we’re not scared. We need to share our lives with everybody — everyone seems to be our household now.”

Vancouver’s Dhruva Narayan, 32, who attends the competition annually, stated that the competition is likely one of the happiest days of his yr.

“Simply go searching, everyone seems to be smiling, and their bellies are absolutely and glad. Nobody has a frown.”

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vaisakhi — Annual Vaisakhi parade in Vancouver, BC Saturday, April 13, 2024. Lots of of hundreds of individuals attend the annual occasion which historically marks the start of the spring harvest season. (Photograph by Jason Payne/ PNG)Photograph by Jason Payne /PNG

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sgrochowski@postmedia.com

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