Sikh temple in Dubai celebrates first anniversary with pomp and show

Dubai - A Gurdwara in Dubai has become a major tourist destination with over 800,000 visitors eating its community kitchen (langar) since its inauguration last year.

As the Sikh temple, Gurunanak Darbar, marks its first anniversary this weekend with a series of programmes, its chairman Surender S. Khandari thanked the local authorities for their support in developing the bustling community centre, which he said has also become a must-see for many tourists.

According to Gulf News, Khandari said the temple received visitors from across nationalities and countries such as from Europe and the Americas to the Far East and Australia.

He said that on New Year’s Day, over 16,000 people visited the temple, double the average number they get on Fridays.

Khandari said irrespective of the numbers, the gurudwara’s community kitchen churns out free vegetarian food for all.

He said that they have a 4,000 sq ft state-of-the-art industrial kitchen with five separate stores to cater to the visitors.

He added that the meal served was basic, but sumptuous and comprises salad, sabzi (vegetable), dal (lentil), roti (bread) and rice.

According to the report, he said that the three-day anniversary celebrations from January 17 to 19 will be attended by several dignitaries and overseas guests, besides residents.