350th Prakash Parv

350th Prakash Parv ३५०वा प्रकाश पर्व 350, ਕੀ ਰੌਸ਼ਨੀ ਦੇ ਤਿਉਹਾਰ
Symbol of Sikhism
Portrait of Guru Gobind Singh
Begins	December 30, 2016
Ends	January 8, 2017[1]
Venue	Takht Sri Patna Sahib, Patna City
Location(s)	Patna, Bihar
Country	India
Organised by	Tourism Department, Government of Bihar
Website
350thprakashparv.bih.nic.in

The 350th Prakash Parv (also Prakash Utsav) or birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh ji is to be celebrated in January 2017 in Patna, India.^[2] 2017 is the year of the 350th anniversary of the 10th Sikh Guru, a spiritual master, warrior, poet and philosopher. At the date of this anniversary, a number of events is scheduled to be organized on the occasion in Patna marking a grand celebration in their history.^[3]

Development and preparation

Just as the construction of the over-bridge, which connects Guru Gobind Path with the National Highway is undergoing^[4] for the 350th anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh, several major construction projects is undertaken for the 350th anniversary celebrations.^[5]

• The roads and bylanes which connects to Gurdwara Kangan Ghat in the Patna City area, situated on the bank of river Ganges is hardly 200 yards from Takht Sri Patna Sahib, are undergoing a major facelift^[6]
• A temporary tent city spanning over 75 acres is to be set up on the banks of Ganga near Kangan Ghat^[7]
• The Indian Railways is re-opening Patna Ghat railway station between Patna Sahib and Gulzarbagh to clear the rush. It has also constructed a new road overbridge near Chowk Shikarpur on main line.^[8][9]
• Several tourist information centres would be opened in Patna^[10]
• 200 CCTV cameras will be installed to monitor the situation^[11]
• The Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (gurdwara management committee) is also undertaking huge constructions and renovations on its campus.^[11]
• Another tent city has been planned at Gandhi Maidan, this would be made by the Punjab Government.^[12]
• On 16 September 2016, Nitish Kumar, chief minister of Bihar, declared a three-day public holiday in Patna from 3 to 5 January 2017.^[1]

Takht Sri Patna Sahib

Host city

Patna, the capital city of Bihar is the birthplace of Shri Guru Gobind Singh ji and host city for 350th anniversary celebrations. Most of the celebrations is scheduled to take place in the neighbourhood of Patna City, close to Takht Sri Patna Sahib Gurudwara. The famous Takht Sri Patna Sahib Gurudwara, also known as Harmandir Saheb is an important shrine for Sikhs from all over the world. Patna Sahib is considered to be the second most important Takhat, according to religious importance.^[11] Patna City is the old area of Patna, located on the eastern side of the state capital. The Government of Bihar will host the first ever International Sikh Conclave from 22 to 24 September 2016.^[13]

Funding

Together, municipal,^[14] provincial and federal levels, that is, all three levels of federal government is contributing funds for the events and new infrastructure planned for the celebrations. In September 2014, officials of the Takht Shri Patna Saheb said NRIs and businessmen from across world will contribute ₹600 crore (US$89 million) to develop Harmandir Saheb.^[15] In February 2016, Union Finance Ministry allocated a package of ₹100 crore (US$15 million) for the celebrations.^[16] The Bihar government on 16 September 2016 said, it will spend ₹100 crore (US$15 million) on the arrangements and the celebrations.^[1]

See also

• Patna Sahib Mahotsav
• Sikhism

References

1. Dev Raj (1999-03-01). "Nitish announces three-day holiday for Sikh celebrations". Telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
2. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/patna/3-day-holiday-during-Guru-Gobind-Singh-prakashotsava/articleshow/54352981.cms
3. "Govt. to celebrate birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh". The Hindu. 2016-07-03. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
4. "Takhat Prakash Utsav 2017 - 350th Birth Anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh". Patnasahib.in. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
5. Share on FacebookShare on Twitter (2016-07-16). "350th Prakash Parv: CM seeks Rs 500 crore from Centre - Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
6. "Massive revamp plan underway at Patna for 350th birth anniversary of Guru | chandigarh". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
7. "Badals review arrangements for 350th Parkash Utsav of Guru Gobind Singh | india". Hindustan Times. 2015-12-18. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
8. "Shuttle to carry Sikh Pilgrims in Patna | Business Standard News". Business-standard.com. 2016-01-21. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
9. "Sikh pride". Telegraphindia.com. 2016-06-25. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
10. Share on FacebookShare on Twitter (2016-07-09). "Nitish reviews preps for 350th Prakash Utsav - Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
11. https://www.punjabupdate.com/2016/01/15/350th-parkash-utsav-of-sri-guru-gobind-singh-ji-to-be-celebrated-on-a-grand-scale
12. Share on FacebookShare on Twitter (2016-07-02). "Punjab chief secy to meet Bihar officials to review preparations of Guru Gobind Singh's birth anniv - Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
13. Share on FacebookShare on Twitter. "400 to take part in int'l Sikh conclave in Patna - Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
14. Piyush Kumar Tripathi (2016-08-07). "Welcome gates for Sikh fest". Telegraphindia.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
15. "The Tribune, Chandigarh, India - Latest News". Tribuneindia.com. 2012-07-18. Retrieved 2016-09-16.
16. By ECONOMICTIMES.COM (2016-02-29). "Budget 2016: Highlights of FM Arun Jaitley's speech - The Economic Times". Economictimes.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 2016-09-16.