A Sikh volunteer offers face masks to passersby during a coronavirus awareness campaign in April in Peshawar.
Peshawar --The Sikh community and other religious
minorities are working to help those suffering from the coronavirus pandemic,
reflecting the strong bond of interfaith harmony in Pakistan.
A Sikh volunteer helps cook meals that will be distributed to needy residents of Karachi
Khalid Saleem, a carpenter who survives on
daily wages, was surprised to see a young Sikh man standing at the main gate of
his house in the Mohallah Jogan Shah neighbourhood in Peshawar.
After sharing
pleasantries, Khalid learned that the man had come to provide food since Khalid
had lost his income because of the coronavirus pandemic and the subsequent
lockdown, which kept him from working.
"I can never forget
this generous and timely support by the minority community and am very thankful
to my Sikh brothers for this act of kindness," he said.
Interfaith Harmony :
The Sikh community's generous support of
those affected by the coronavirus reflects the strong bond of interfaith harmony
in Pakistan.
A Sikh volunteer helps a worker of the Al-Khidmat
Foundation in sanitizing a church in
Karachi.
"We have provided all
kinds of help to those affected by the coronavirus and supplied food at
[residents'] doorsteps," said Jatindar Singh, a Sikh resident of Peshawar
and chairman of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) chapter of the National Council of
Peace and Harmony.
"The Sikh community
has worked in collaboration with a number of charity organisations and donated
financial assistance to help and support our countrymen who are facing problems
due to restrictions on commercial activities from the coronavirus
outbreak," Singh said.
Apart from providing
relief, the Sikh community has participated in campaigns to raise awareness
among the general public on safety measures against the coronavirus, he added.
"The Sikh community
and representatives of other minority groups including Christian and Hindus
have taken part in campaigns launched to help and raise awareness... during the
pandemic," said Ubaid Ullah, president of the Pak-Youth Parliament.
Pakistanis appreciate the
goodwill gestures by the minority community, he added.
"In Nankana Sahib, a
district in Punjab Province ... named after the first guru of Sikhs, Sikh community
members distributed food and sanitiser," said Surjeet Singh Kanwal,
general secretary of the Pakistan Sikh Council.
The Sikh community has
installed a walk-through sanitiser gate on the main road in the district,
through which thousands of pedestrians and even motorcyclists pass daily.
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