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Sarai (building)

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Saragarhi Sarai near the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar, Punjab

A Sarai or Niwas is a type of Sikh structure that function as rooming-houses, inns, or hostels for religious pilgrims. Nearly all of the major Sikh gurdwaras have sarais associated with them.

History

This Guru Ram Das Niwas was originally built in 1931, with its foundation stone having been laid by Sant Sadhu Singh of Patiala on 17 January 1931.

There are six sarais operating to serve pilgrims of the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar. A couple of the sarais serving the Golden Temple were lit on fire during Operation Blue Star in 1984.

In 2021, The Tribune reported that the SGPC planned to demolish the structure for new constructions, which was criticized by heritage-advocates.

List of sarais

Amritsar

Some notable sarais of Amritsar include:

  • Shri Guru Ram Das Niwas – 160 rooms (free). Guests generally can only lodge at the sarai for three days at a time and must obey the principles of Sikhism during their stay. It is currently the oldest extant sarai of the Golden Temple complex.
  • Shri Guru Nanak Niwas – 21 rooms (free). This sarai is also contains sectarian offices of various departments of the SGPC.
  • Shri Guru Arjan Dev Niwas – containing 65 rooms. Located at the entrance point to the main sarai section. A branch of the Punjab & Sind Bank can be found in it.
  • Shri Guru Hargobind Ji Niwas – containing 88 rooms and 3 halls. It is located near Gurdwara Baba Atal and its basement hosts the Sri Guru Ramdas Library.
  • Mata Ganga Ji Niwas – containing 94 rooms and situated exactly opposite to the Guru Hargobind Niwas. The structure hosts the Internet department of the SGPC.
  • New Akal Rest House – containing 45 rooms
  • Baba Deep Singh Ji Niwas – containing 142 rooms and located near Gurdwara Shaheed Ganj Sahib (Shaheedan).
  • Mata Bhag Kaur Ji Niwas – containing 41 rooms and located at Chownk Ram Talai, G.T. Road.
  • Saragarhi Niwas –

See also

Notes

  1. Alternatively spelt as 'serai'.

References

  1. ^ Dilgeer, Harjinder Singh (1997). The Sikh Reference Book (1st ed.). The Sikh Educational Trust. p. 42. ISBN 9780969596424.
  2. ^ "Sarai Booking". Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  3. Singh, Darshan (1987). The Sikh Art and Architecture. Department of Guru Nanak Sikh Studies, Panjab University. p. 22.
  4. "Sarai Info". Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  5. Dhillon, Gurdarshan Singh (1996). Truth About Punjab: SGPC White Paper. Amritsar: Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. The buildings of Guru Ram Das Sarai, Guru Nanak Niwas and the S.G.P.C. office in the Teja Singh Samundri Hall were also set on fire.
  6. Deora, Man Singh (1992). Aftermath of Operation Bluestar. Anmol Publications. pp. 443, 449, 459.
  7. "Don't raze Sri Guru Ramdas Ji Niwas 'sarai' in Golden Temple: Activists". The Tribune. 1 August 2021. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  8. ^ "Golden Temple". Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  9. "Sikh body against demolition of oldest serai at Golden Temple". The Tribune. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 22 January 2025.
  10. Paul, G. S. (18 June 2024). "Golden Temple sarai: Despite plaint, devotees still being duped by fake web portals on pretext of booking rooms". The Tribune. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
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