Sale of bottled water in Golden Temple complex raises queries

Tribune News Service

Charanjit Singh Teja

Amritsar, March 29

After a recent resolution adopted by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the outlets inside the Golden Temple complex have started selling packaged water bottles. The move has raised questions over the decision of the Sikh apex body. SGPC member Kiranjot Kaur questioned whether the quality of normal drinking water was up to the mark or not, in addition to generating plastic waste out of the discarded water bottles?

Kiranjot Kaur, member, SGPC said, “Amritsar was established around the Holy Sarovar and everyone knows the importance of water at Darbar Sahib. Devotees from around the world take holy water from Amritsar. We all drink the water from ‘Chabbeels’ and it is safe. The commercialisation of water inside the Darbar Sahib complex is not required. Bottled water is not safe and also increases the plastic waste. We have no objections to any visitor wanting to drink bottled water and it is available in the market. We are offering the groundwater at various points in the Golden Temple and it is unnecessary to give approval to the vendors to sell packaged water bottles.”

The kiosks inside the Golden Temple complex sell cold drinks at subsidised rates. In the past few years, they started selling noodles and other fast food items. A section of the Sikh community opposes the sale of such items inside the Golden Temple. The issue had been discussed in the sub-committee and there was a proposal to remove the kiosks selling cold drinks. However, the decision to sell packaged water bottles also raised questions on the quality of water being served by the SGPC in ‘Chabbeels’.

“We have four tube-wells which fetch groundwater from more than 500 feet deep. We had conducted tests and the TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) was accurate. Testing is not regular but we haven’t received any complaint about water contamination. Water quality is good,” said Sukhjinder Singh, SDO, SGPC.

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#Darbar Sahib Amritsar #Golden Temple Amritsar #SGPC #Sikhs