CHANDIGARH, Punjab—A catalog is being prepared to keep a record of rare Sikh manuscripts and other literature present in Pakistan present in the libraries, museums, and people’s homes in Pakistan. In this collection, detailed information on rare Sikh scripture’s historical significance will be provided, along with author and publisher details, where possible.
A US-based Sikh researcher named Dr. Dalvir Singh has taken this initiative to preserve the Sikh heritage in Pakistan. Dr. Dalvir Singh is known for penning a book titled “The Sikh Heritage – Beyond Borders”.
Interacting with media, Dr. Dalvir Singh said that the work to preserve Sikh heritage in India had started soon after 1947’s partition but in Pakistan no one paid any heed to preserve the precious rare Sikh manuscripts.
“The Pakistanis have preserved several handwritten saroops of Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji, Dasam Granth, Janam Sakhi, Zafarnama, Literature Books, several documents pertaining to the kingdom of Maharaja Ranjit Singh in Persian language and much more but the condition of these scriptures has worsened due to lack of proper care,” he maintained.
He further informed that he has begun efforts without any external support to preserve these scripture through proper repair of pages and binding. “After the repair and binding work, all these scriptures will be indexed and digitized,” he added.
He revealed that the Pakistani Sikh Professor Kalyan Singh Kalyan, who is serving in Government College University Lahore, will be assisting in this task.
