The day-long celebration is the largest Vaisakhi Khalsa Day Parade in the world, which draws in excess of 500,000 guests across cultures and religions.
SURREY – The annual Surrey Vaisakhi Khalsa Day parade has become a victim to COVID-19 for a second straight year as organizers have decided not do the largest parade in North America.
Gurdwara Sahib Dasmesh Darbar, organizers of the Parade which was scheduled for April 24th in Surrey, said they are committed to ensuring a safe and healthy environment for the community they serve and in adherence with provincial guidelines for COVID-19, have made the difficult decision to announce that the annual Surrey Vaisakhi Khalsa Day parade will not occur in 2021.
The day-long celebration is the largest Vaisakhi Khalsa Day Parade in the world, which draws in excess of 500,000 guests across cultures and religions.
“It is clear that there is no path for an event the size and magnitude of our Parade to occur safely within the next three months,” says Gurdwara Sahib Dasmesh Darbar President Moninder Singh. “We will celebrate this important date in the Sikh calendar within our family groups and with special broadcast programming but will look to gather again as a community for the traditional Surrey Vaisakhi Khalsa Day Parade in 2022.”
Surrey Vaisakhi Khalsa Parade Background:
The annual Vaisakhi Khalsa Day Parade in Surrey, British Columbia attracts over 500,000 people annually in a celebration of one of the most significant days in the Sikh calendar, the creation of the Khalsa in 1699. The event welcomes people of all cultures and communities who come together in this communal gathering of understanding, sharing, and goodwill.
The creation of the Khalsa in 1699 by Sri Guru Gobind Singh was for the protection of the oppressed, the upliftment of the downtrodden, and the furthering of Sarbat da Bhalla (welfare of all humanity) through creating sovereign human beings that recognize that we are all connected through a greater power. We urge the Sikh community to take this message during the month of April and to support their local communities across the world through charity, service, and solidarity within movements where there is inequality (race, gender, etc.) as this would be the true reflection of the Khalsa in today’s world.
