Sikh Bodies, NGOs and Gurdwaras Lead Extensive Flood Relief Operations in Punjab

Punjab is once again in the grip of a devastating natural calamity. Torrential rains and swollen rivers — Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej — have unleashed widespread floods across the state, leaving thousands displaced, villages marooned, and farmland submerged. While official relief measures have moved slowly, Sikh organizations, NGOs, Gurdwaras, and local religious bodies have stepped forward with remarkable speed and determination, transforming the crisis into an extraordinary display of grassroots humanitarianism.

Sikh Organizations at the Frontlines

As floodwaters inundated districts such as Amritsar, Ferozepur, Fazilka, Gurdaspur, Kapurthala, Pathankot, and Tarn Taran, a network of Sikh humanitarian organizations mobilized instantly. Leading the charge were internationally recognized groups like Khalsa Aid, Global Sikh Aid, United Sikhs, Kalgidhar Trust Baru Sahib, Sarbat Da Bhala Charitable Trust, and Akaal Aid. Alongside them, numerous smaller NGOs — primarily run by members of the Sikh community — activated their volunteers, arranged logistics, and reached deep into affected zones.

Their operations were not limited to ration distribution or medical help. In one of the most dramatic rescue missions, on 27 August Khalsa Aid and Global Sikh Aid collaborated in the operation that freed over 400 students and staff trapped in the flooded Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya at Daburi in Punjab’s Gurdaspur. It was a telling moment of organized, fearless service that left a mark on families across Punjab.

The Amritsar-based Akal Purakh Ki Fauj dispatched its own teams to flooded villages, while the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC) deployed its local functionaries to coordinate immediate relief and rehabilitation.

The SGPC’s Relief Network

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the apex Sikh religious body, set up a wide web of relief camps across Punjab to provide shelter, food, and basic facilities. From historic shrines to smaller rural Gurdwaras, these camps collecting the relief material and providing shelters to the needy in case of need.

The list of relief centers released by the SGPC reflects the spiritual geography of Sikhism itself:

• Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib, Sri Anandpur Sahib (Ropar)

• Gurdwara Sri Dukhniwaran Sahib, Patiala

• Gurdwara Sri Ber Sahib, Sultanpur Lodhi (Kapurthala)

• Gurdwara Sri Tegh Bahadur Sahib, Baba Bakala (Amritsar)

• Gurdwara Sri Baoli Sahib, Goindwal Sahib (Tarn Taran)

• Gurdwara Bhatha Sahib, Kotla Nihang (Ropar)

• Gurdwara Sri Chamkaur Sahib (Rupnagar)

• Gurdwara Sri Charankamal Sahib, Machhiwara (Ludhiana)

• Gurdwara Sri Barath Sahib (Pathankot)

• Gurdwara Baba Budha Sahib Ji, Ramdas (Amritsar)

• Gurdwara Sri Darbar Sahib, Dera Baba Nanak (Gurdaspur)

• Gurdwara Chohla Sahib, Tarn Taran

• Gurdwara Gurusar Jamni Sahib, Bazidpur (Ferozepur)

• Gurdwara Prakash Asthan Bhai Lalu Ji, Dalla (Kapurthala)

• Gurdwara Bhai Tara Singh Ji Shaheed, Wan (Tarn Taran)

• Gurdwara Baba Bir Singh Ji, Rattoke (Tarn Taran)

These Gurdwaras, historically places of worship and learning, have once again become centers of sustenance and safety — extending the Sikh tradition of langar (free community kitchen) and shelter to all in need, regardless of caste, creed, or religion.

Farmers and Villagers: First Responders

If Sikh organizations represent the organized wing of relief, farmers and villagers embody the spirit of spontaneous self-help. The Times of India, in a detailed report published on August 30, 2025, by senior journalist IP Singh, captured this spirit:

“When farmers from across Punjab have already started taking relief material to the flood hit areas, gurdwaras and Sikh groups in urban areas have also started mobilising help for the flood-affected areas. They are collecting rations and other consumables and will take the material to the flood-affected areas.”

From Jalandhar, the management committee of Gurdwara Guru Nanak Mission, under the leadership of President Gurbaksh Singh Juneja, began collecting rations and supplies that will be sent to affected villages. Adarsh Nagar Gurdwara and Gurdwara Nauvin Patshahi, Guru Teg Bahadur Nagar also pitched in — not just with food, but with critical resources like diesel, meant to power the tractors and pumps of farmers struggling against the rising waters.

In Phagwara, the community organization Sikhs for Equality began mobilizing aid, ensuring that even small towns and their residents could contribute directly to relief.

Sikh Diaspora and Terai Farmers Step Forward

The flood relief momentum has not remained confined to Punjab. The Times of India also reported how Sikh farmers from the Terai region of Uttar Pradesh — districts like Lakhimpur Kheri, Pilibhit, and Shahjahanpur — rallied in solidarity with their brethren.

A group of ten volunteers from their collective, Guru Nanak Naam Leva Sangat, left on Friday to assess where their efforts would be most effective. In a video appeal, they urged people to help them extend their reach.

“Ten of us from our organisation ‘Guru Nanak Naam Leva Sangat’ from Lakhimpur Kheri, Pilibhit, and Shahjahanpur have left on Friday, and we will reach Punjab on Sunday to assess where we should take what material. Back home, our other members will mobilise the collections of material and funds. We want to reach the families and areas where there is dire need,” ToI report quotes Ranjit Singh Gill and Amardeep Singh from Pilibhit.

They noted that this was not their first effort — in 2023, their volunteers had also extended help during the floods in Sultanpur Lodhi.

The Spirit of Seva and Sarbat Da Bhala

What stands out in these relief operations is not only the scale but the ethos of seva (selfless service) and Sarbat Da Bhala (welfare for all). Sikh history is replete with examples of community kitchens, free hospitals, disaster relief, and open shelters. In the current crisis, that tradition is once again alive — whether through an SGPC camp in a centuries-old shrine, a farmer donating diesel from his reserves, or a village collective ferrying food across submerged fields.

The state machinery may yet catch up, but it is the Sikh institutions — from local Gurdwaras to global NGOs — that have written the first draft of Punjab’s flood relief story. They have turned despair into resilience, reminding once more that in Punjab, when waters rise, so too does the will to serve.