Indian-American Philanthropist Sant Singh Chatwal Donates $1 Million to a Sikh History Project

September 30, 2016: An Indian-American Philanthropist has donated USD 1 million for a noble cause. Sant Singh Chatwal has come forward to help in the frame-up of an ambitious project of five million dollars at Sikh Center for International Studies at the Rakabganj Gurdwara in New Delhi.

The project is the initiative of the Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Management Committee (DSGMC) under the leadership of its president Manjit Singh GK and general secretary Manjinder Singh Sirsa. The project in India aims at finer acquainting the Sikh youth and the international community about the origin and values of the Sikh faith.

Sant Singh Chatwal is the owner of Bombay Palace chain of restaurants and Hampshire Hotels & Resorts. On May 27, 2015, in a press conference in New York, Chatwal said he will contribute the money in the project which will be completed in two years from then.

The center is to be built as part of what organizers described as the 'Mool Project'. Mool variously means origin, essence, root and care in Punjabi. It basically describes, who Sikhs are and how they historically and religiously emerged in India.

Chatwal described the initiative as "unique" and said the young Sikhs living in India and outside India do not know and lack the better understanding of the Holy Book Guru Granth Sahib. Further, the project will help them spread the message of Sikhism to both Sikhs and non-Sikhs.

Chatwal was awarded Padma Bhushan in the year 2010 by the then president Pratibha Patil. This award led to public controversy based on allegations of misconduct. The Government has since then upheld the award. In November 2013, Chatwal was named the 19th most substantial, significant and contemporary Sikh in the world.

– by Enakshi Roy Chowdhury of Newsgram. Twitter: @enakshirc58