A Sarai or Niwas is a type of Sikh structure that function as rooming-houses, inns, or hostels for religious pilgrims.[note 1][1][2][3] Nearly all of the major Sikh gurdwaras have sarais associated with them.[1] Many well-known sarais are attached to the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar and are operated by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee.
This Guru Ram Das Niwas was originally built in 1931, with its foundation stone having been laid by Sant Sadhu Singh of Patiala on 17 January 1931.[2]
There are six sarais operating to serve pilgrims of the Golden Temple complex in Amritsar.[4] A couple of the sarais serving the Golden Temple were lit on fire during Operation Blue Star in 1984.[5][6]
In 2021, The Tribune reported that the SGPC planned to demolish the structure of the Guru Ram Das Niwas for new constructions, which was criticized by heritage-advocates.[7]
List of sarais
Amritsar
Some notable sarais of Amritsar include:
Shri Guru Ram Das Niwas – 160 rooms (free).[1][2] Guests generally can only lodge at the sarai for three days at a time and must obey the principles of Sikhism during their stay.[8] It is currently the oldest extant sarai of the Golden Temple complex.[9]
Shri Guru Nanak Niwas – 21 rooms (free).[1][2][8] This sarai is also contains sectarian offices of various departments of the SGPC.[2]
Shri Guru Arjan Dev Niwas – containing 65 rooms.[2][8] Located at the entrance point to the main sarai section.[2] A branch of the Punjab & Sind Bank can be found in it.[2]
Shri Guru Hargobind Ji Niwas – containing 88 rooms and 3 halls.[2][8] It is located near Gurdwara Baba Atal and its basement hosts the Sri Guru Ramdas Library.[2]
Mata Ganga Ji Niwas – containing 94 rooms and situated exactly opposite to the Guru Hargobind Niwas.[2] The structure hosts the Internet department of the SGPC.[2]
New Akal Rest House – containing 45 rooms[1][2][8]
Baba Deep Singh Ji Niwas – containing 142 rooms and located near Gurdwara Shaheed Ganj Sahib (Shaheedan).[2]
Mata Bhag Kaur Ji Niwas – containing 41 rooms and located at Chownk Ram Talai, G.T. Road.[2]
↑ Dhillon, Gurdarshan Singh (1996). Truth About Punjab: SGPC White Paper. Amritsar: Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. The buildings of Guru Ram Das Sarai, Guru Nanak Niwas and the S.G.P.C. office in the Teja Singh Samundri Hall were also set on fire.
↑ Deora, Man Singh (1992). Aftermath of Operation Bluestar. Anmol Publications. pp.443, 449, 459.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
