Jaswant Singh Gandam/Raman Nehra
PHAGWARA: NRIs lent helping hands to their native brothers and sisters in promoting a noble cause.
An eminent social service body ’Helping Hands Organization’ (HHO) held its ninth mass marriages program herein local Gurdwara Akalian.
With huge contribution from NRIs and other philanthropists, the NGO, led by Harmandir Singh Basra, solemnized marriages of nine needy girls, taking total number of such marriages to 100, spending lakhs of rupees on these during nine years.
The UK-based Punjab Radio London’s MD Surjit Singh Ghuman and NGO’s Germany unit President Tek Chand Puny came specially for the function and joined NRIs in their contribution to the noble cause.
Gurdwara premises were tastefully decorated for the occasion.
HHO activists, local residents and prominent personalities, including Central minister Vijay Sampla, local MLA Som Parkash Kainth, former Punjab minister and DCC President Joginder Singh Mann, Mayor Arun Khosla, Deputy Mayor Ranjit Singh Khurana, SGPC member Sarwan Singh Kular, a UK-based business magnate cum local Wahid-Sandhar Sugars Ltd MD Sukhbir Singh Sandhar were among those who gave ‘ashirwad’ (blessings) to the newly weds.
The NGO hosted high tea for all nine ‘barats’ (marriage parties) that landed in the complex with full ‘band-baja’, got ‘anand karaj’(religious ceremony for solemnization of marriage) done and gifted all necessary goods of daily use to the brides.
All dignitaries and NRIs lauded the role of the NGO for footing the bill of tying nuptial knots of the needy girls.
Expressing concern over the growing trend of astronomical expenditures on weddings that made poor parents unable to bear the bills, they said that HHO was doing a very noble cause by arranging marriages of needy girls and thereby lending a helping hand to the poor parents.
HHO chief Harmandir Singh Basra thanked all.
