Tharman praises the ‘continued vibrance’ of the Sikh community in Singapore

SINGAPORE — At a visit to the biggest Sikh religious event in Singapore, Senior Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam noted the contributions the Sikh community has made to the country.

“The Sikh community is a minority within a minority, but that makes its place even more special because how it is accommodated and its culture celebrated within our society is how we know we are all together in Singapore. The continued vibrance of the Sikh community demonstrates that very well,” Mr Shanmugaratnam, who is also the Coordinating Minister for Social Policies, is quoted in theprint.in as saying.

He visited the biennial Naam Ras Kirtan Darbar, a volunteer-run event, at the Singapore Expo on Saturday (Dec 24).

Mr Shanmugaratnam went around the venue and met with members of the Sikh community. He also sampled the offerings at the community kitchen or langar.

Singapore’s Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth and Constellar Holdings, the operator of the Expo Centre, and of course, the country’s Sikh institutions supported the event.

It was held from Dec 23 to 26 and was considered to be particularly special this year after getting postponed in 2020 due to COVID-19 pandemic restrictions.

Although the Sikh community numbers between 12,000 and 15,000 in Singapore, over 40,000 people visited the Singapore Expo for Naam Ras Kirtan Darbar this year, with non-Sikhs dropping by as well.

theprint.in also said that Sikh celebrities from countries such as India, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States attended the event.

A spokesman said that this year, the lives of Sikh Gurus and important people in history were celebrated at the event. Aside from Mr Shanmugaratnam, the event was also graced on Saturday by former MP Inderjit Singh.

“We are delighted by the return of Naam Ras as pandemic-related measures have been relaxed. With the support of different organizations, we are able to see the community from Singapore and the region come together again,” Mr Singh was quoted in The Straits Times as saying. /TISG

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