Dubai bizman to donate roti-maker for Kartarpur

Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Dera Baba Nanak, December 8

Dubai-based construction magnate and philanthropist Surinder Pal Singh Oberoi, who is also the spirit behind laying the a 4-km water pipe, replete with RO plants and filters from the T-point to the Integrated Check Post (ICP), will be exporting a chappati-producing machine and a dishwasher at a combined cost of Rs 35 lakh from the UAE to Kartarpur in a few days.

Oberoi said he had already finalised the details with Governor of Pakistan Punjab Chaudhury Mohammad Sarwar who is the head of various committees engaged in supervising the working of the Kartarpur gurdwara, including its ‘langar’ (community kitchen). Oberoi held a meeting with Sarwar on November 23 at the Governor house in Lahore.

“I have already placed an order in Dubai for a machine which will produce at least 1,000 chappatis in an hour. Simultaneously, a big dishwasher, having the capacity to clean 500 utensils in an hour, has also been ordered. Mohammad Sarwar will be ensuring that both machines land at the shrine without any hassles,” he said.

Oberoi said when he visited the gurdwara with the first jatha on November 9, he found that ‘langar’ was being run on a piecemeal basis following which neither enough chappatis were being produced nor the utensils were being cleaned on time. “I was there and then decided to do my bit. Sarwar is a long-time friend and when I confided in him he said he would ensure that red tape would not hit the smooth passage of machines to the shrine,” he added.