The foundation of Guru Gobind Singh Bhawan was laid during the 300th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. The foundation stone was laid down by the then President of India, Hon’ble Dr Zakir Hussain on 27th December 1967. Therefore, the Bhawan from the very beginning is accepted as the emblem of Punjabi University and dedicated to promote peace and harmony. It is a five petalled structure in the midst of a water pool expressing different frangrances of divinity. The five identical constituent wings, designed in the style of a boat floating on water, are allocated to five major religions in the chronological order of their historical manifestation, namely Hinduism, Jainism, Budhism, Christianity, Islam and Sikhism. The layout of this building symbolizes spirit of the religion.
This year the department will turn 50 years old and is all set to celebrate its golden jubilee in style with many conferences and functions organized to mark the occasion. The Bhawan is also dedicating it’s celebrations to the 350th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh Ji. To celebrate both the 350 th birth anniversary of Guru Gobind Singh Ji and inauguration of the golden jubilee year celebrations of Guru Gobind Singh Bhawan, the department of Religious Studies is organizing “Sarb Dharam Sammelan” and “Interfaith Conference”.
The head of the department Dr Gurmeet Singh Sidhu gives more details about the history and celebrations in store for this event in this interview.
