AMRITSAR SAHIB—[The 1984 Sikh Genocide Memorial] will house a state-of-the-art specially designed AC, a building that can withstand devastating earthquakes of up to magnitude 8 on the Richter Scale, heat resistant glasses and will have pure white marble with carvings showcasing modern Sikh architecture.
The memorial will have automated lighting system, with the intensity of the lighting in the complex being inversely proportional to natural light. So at the darkest hours of night, the lights would then have maximum illumination.
“We will install a made-to-order AC in the memorial. The design would ensure that ducts are not visible. A look inside would suggest there is no AC but the cooling would prove otherwise,” Inderbir Singh Walia, the architect for the memorial, told The Indian Express . “We are in contact with a couple of companies to get that AC made,” he added.
Adds Ajay Arora of the Jalandhar-based Arotech Structural Consultant, which has been engaged to take care of aspects relating to the buildings strength: “The building would be able to withstand an earthquake of up to 8 on the Richter scale. Amritsar falls in Zone IV of earthquake prone areas classified on the basis of frequency and intensity of the natural calamity. There are a total of five zones and cities in zone IV are considered to be very vulnerable to earthquakes. So, the building has been designed in such a manner that it would have no effect even if there is a devastating earthquake.”
The construction firm is also making plans to acquire the heat resistant glass that would be used in the memorial. “We are trying to find out if that glass is available in Mumbai. If it is not available there, we will export that glass,” Walia said. He said that octagonal shape memorial was likely to be completed in a year’s time. “The memorial would be built as per Sikh Maryada and we would ensure that it does not overshadow the Golden Temple,” Walia added.
It is the view of the Sikh24 editors that the Sikh Panth has every right to build a memorial dedicated to those innocent and fearless Sikhs who died during the Indian Government’s assault on Darbar Sahib and other historical Sikh Gurdwaras. While our editors agree that the way the memorial is being built may be controversial, the right that the Sikh Panth has to build a memorial wherever it chooses is not in question.
