User:Jaspreet sanghotra

 SIKH COMMUNITY IN JAMSHEDPUR 

INTRODUCTION

Jamshedpur is a city of the Indian state of Jharkhand. It has the most people of any city in Jharkhand. According to the 2011 census of India, the Jamshedpur has a populated of 1,337,131.The city was founded by the late Jamshedji Nusserwanji Tata. It is the headquarters of the East Singhbhum district of Jharkhand and is the 36th – largest urban agglomeration. The city is located in nature’s den in Chota Nagpur plateau, surrounded by the picturesque Dalma Hill and bordered by the rivers Subarnarekha and Kharkai. At the end of the 19th century, Jamshetji Tata met steelmakers in Pittsburgh to get the most advanced technology for his plant. At the turn of the twentieth century, Jamshetji Tata asked geologist Charles Page Perin to help him find the site to build India’s first steel plant. The prospectors C.M Weld, Dorabji Tata and Shapurji Saklatvala took nearly three years in a painstaking search across vast stretches of inhospitable terrain to find a location. As a result, many areas are well planned and there are public leisure places such as the jubilee park. What the city looks like today is a testament to their visionary plans.

CLIMATE

Jamshedpur features a tropical wet and dry climate. Summers start in mid – March and can be extremely hot in May and June. The temperature variation during summer is from 35 to 49 °C (95 to 120 °F). The minimum temperature during winters is 5 °C (41 °F). The climate of Jamshedpur is marked by south-west monsoon. Jamshedpur gets heavy rainfall from July to September and receives about 1,200 mm (47 in) of rainfall annually.

THE COMMUNITY

Sikhism, religion and philosophy founded in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent in the late 15th century. Its members are known as Sikhs. According to Sikh tradition, Sikhism was established by Guru Nanak and subsequently led by a succession of nine other Gurus. All ten human Gurus, Sikhs believe, were inhabited by a single spirit. Upon, Sikhs were given the titles of Singh (male) and Kaur (female). The rules of life included behavioral code, and a dress code. Therefore, it is the fifth largest religion in the world with a population of upwards of 30 million worldwide. There are an estimated 80 thousand Sikhs settled in the city. Sikhs from Punjab came to this city since the inception of the steel city in the 1907. Earlier they were established nearby in Calcutta and Kharagpur. In 1910 – 1920 decade the eminent Sikhs who took part in building up the Tata Steel were Inder Singh, Kundan Singh and some others. They shared their responsibilities in almost all the walks of life. There are now about 80 thousand Sikh settled in the city. 60% of them are in service and the rest are engaged in trade, contract, business etc. they have been good industrialist also. The first of them is Sardar Inder Singh who had come straight from Roorkee Engineering College around 1920 and after having served in the Tata Steel for some time, had started the Indian Steel, Wire Products (ISWP). He also established another industry JEMCO in succeeding years. There are about 22 Gurudwaras in the city. One Central Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee looks after them. There are several schools also managed by them. Sikh athletes and sportsmen of the city have almost always been participating in the nationals, Asians, Olympics bringing home laurels. The national cyclists – Amar Singh and Gurudial Singh brothers and a few others have earned great names in cycling in the world.

In the Transport business also Sikh participation is about 65% in the city. They operate All India Services. They have their activities in cultural and literacy fields also. A few of them have written good poems and stories in Urdu as well. Thus the city of Jamshedpur presents a panorama of cosmopolitanism in culture, religion and race from the very inception of its foundation as the premier steel town in the country. Because of the cross – section of Indian thought and culture, of people of Jamshedpur crossed all narrow barriers and frontiers of class and caste. The city is the symbol of a miniature India where the unity is in diversity, an age-old phrase in our history, is manifested truly in the life and culture of the people of Jamshedpur.

THE GENDER SCENARION: MALE AND FEMALE RATIO

Jamshedpur’s ranking in terms of gender ratio is very low. It is noteworthy that the gender ratio in Jamshedpur was only 178 compared to the all India average of 933. The gender- ratio declined from 201 in 1991 to 178 in 2011. Source: computed from government of India, census of India 2006

It is also important to note that the proportion of the Sikh population in the age group of 0 – 6 years in the total Sikh population of India is 12.8 per cent, as compared with 15.7 per cent in all communities. The alarmingly low sex ratio in this age group among Sikhs will state in general and amongst the Sikhs in particular. It is an indication that in the near future male Sikh youth may have to search for brides from amongst Non-Sikh communities, either in Punjab or elsewhere. Such a serious imbalance in the gender ratio is a disturbing phenomenon. It is an indication that the practices of female feticide and infanticide may still be prevailing in Jamshedpur in general and among the Sikhs in particular in spite of the fact that it is against the Sikh religious philosophy and ethics. Historically, a number of cultural, social and economic factors have been responsible for low sex ratio among the Sikhs. The preference for a male child is particularly pronounced in Jamshedpur because of its material and agricultural traditions. According to the National Family Health Survey 29 per cent of the parents in Jamshedpur wanted more sons than daughters. Nearly 86 per cent of the parent wanted at least one son. Only 0.4 per cent of the parents wanted more daughters than sons.

The preferences for sons in the Punjabi psyche are deeply rooted in their history. The main reasons usually given for son preference were: to run the economic support, to inherit the family property, and to take care of their parents in old age. Due to the subjugation and atrocities committed on local women by the victorious invaders, women came to be perceived as a liability in Punjabi society. More generally, other forms of violence against women remain high in Jamshedpur. A recent report highlighted the fact that women continue to be unsafe in Jamshedpur, as per the information revealed by the Jharkhand State Women’s Commission. At least one rape and kidnapping of two women are reported daily in Jamshedpur. A women is murdered every third day and at least one case of molestation is registered every day. At least 12 women commit suicide every month and the same number are killed by dowry. And all this is happening in a state where the majority of the residents are Sikhs.

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EMPLOYMENT AND OCCUPATIONAL STRUCTURE'''

Traditionally, the main occupation of the Sikhs has been agriculture, along with defense, transport and small scale business. Nevertheless, they have diversified into many other occupations over time. It is worth nothing that the number of Sikhs employed in major government departments, up to the second decade of the 20th century, was insignificant as compared with other religious communities. The spread of education, and shrinking opportunities in agriculture and in rural areas, have been largely responsible for the increase in non-agricultural employment. Immigration and employment opportunities in other religious communities. The spread of education and shrinking opportunities in agriculture and in rural areas, have been largely responsible for the increase in non-agricultural employment. Immigration and employment opportunities in other countries of the world have also made a significant contribution towards their entry into new occupations. Nevertheless, the rural Sikhs in Jamshedpur are still predominantly engaged in agriculture and allied agricultural activities. It is important to note that the work participation rate and the nature of occupations are major determinants of the economic position of a community. Besides, there is a very high correlation between work and dignity. The work participation rate among Sikhs is lower than the average work participation rate of all religious communities in India, according to 2001 census. Therefore, the occupational structure of Jamshedpur presents a different situation as compared to all India, as far as the Sikh community is concerned.

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PRINCIPLES OF SIKHISM

1. Cutting Hair: Cutting hair is forbidden in Sikhism for those who have taken the Amrit nitiation ceremony during the Sanchar (April 10 - May 10). These Amritdhari or Khalsa Sikhs are required to keep unshorn hair.

2. Intoxication: Consumption of alcohol, non-medicinal drugs, tobacco, and other intoxicants is forbidden in Sikhism according to the "Sikh Rahit Maryada". A Khalsa Amritdhari Sikh who consumes any intoxicant is considered patit lapsed, and may be readmitted into Khalsa only if re-baptised. In contrast, Nihangs of Sikh tradition who protect Sikh shrines wearing visible and ready weaponry along with their notable blue turbans, practice meditation with the aid of cannabis. Sehajdari Sikhs, in practice however, socially consume some alcohol; the prohibition on smoking is practiced almost universally by all Sikhs.

3. Priestly Class: Sikhism does not have priests, but does have liturgical service which employs people for a salary to sing hymns (Kirtan), officiate an Ardās Puja or marriage, and perform services at a Gurdwara.. Any Sikh can become a Granthi to look after the Guru Granth Sahib, and any Sikh is free to read from the Guru Granth Sahib.

4. Eating Halal Meat: Both initiated and uninitiated Sikhs are strictly prohibited from eating meat from animals slaughtered by the halal method, known as Kutha meat, where the animal is killed by pronouncing the name of Allah and then exsanguination (via throat-cutting). According to Eleanor Nesbitt, on the general issue of vegetarianism versus non-vegetarianism, there is no definitive instruction in the Sikh code. In an Adi Granth verse, Guru Nanak responds to Hindu Brahmins who teach that it is polluting to eat meat by saying that as human beings, we are part of the chain of life, and even plants are living organisms. In other verses, Guru Nanak says that "Fools wrangle about eating meat", and calls out the Pandits by saying that "The eating of meat is considered sinful, but gratifying of greed is held good", in essence teaching that quelling the cruelty of the human mind is supreme rather than mere abstaining from eating meat. The ban on kutha meat (taken along with ban on sexual relations with Muslims and a ban on smoking – a habit common among 18th-century Indian Muslims), states Nesbitt, may have been meant for Sikhs to have a social separation from the Muslims due to the 17th- and 18th-century resistance of the Sikhs to the oppression of the Mughal and Afghan armies (both formed of Muslims). Amritdhari Sikhs, or those baptized with the Amrit, have been strict vegetarians, abstaining from all meat and eggs. Sikhs who eat meat seek the Jhatka method of producing meat believing it to cause less suffering to the animal. The uninitiated Sikhs too are not habitual meat-eaters by choice, and beef (cow meat) has been a traditional taboo. Typically meat is not served in community free meals such as langar.

5. Adultery is forbidden.

CONCLUSION

In Sikh households, the selection of a marriage partner is arranged formally with parental approval. The idea of romantic love is gaining some popularity among contemporary youth, but economic, educational, and family considerations are still among the important factors in most decisions to marry. Caste endogamy is on the decline among Sikh professionals. Doctrinally, women enjoy complete equality, but in actual practice they have yet to achieve equal representation within various Sikh organizations. In the pluralistic societies of the postmodern world, where emphasis is being placed upon liberty, diversity, tolerance, and equality of race and gender, Sikh ideals are thoroughly in place and congenial to the developing values of the society.

With continuing disinformation against Sikhs and their religion going on in some quarters it has become necessary to explain the true facts of Sikh history to the scholars of the world, lest they swallow the baseless distortions presented by anti-Sikh elements. Although Sikhs are now spread all over the world, very little is known about them in the Western world. Some look upon a Sikh as an oddity, an archaic ethnic character from the ancient Hindu world. This perception is grossly incorrect. As already shown, Sikhs are practitioners of a fairly modern religion, Sikhism, totally distinct from other religions. Also, little does the world know that the Sikhs are the heirs of a mighty nation of unsurpassed military glory and political power which, when challenged, shook the British Indian Empire. They would have chased the British out of India had it not been for the treachery and treason planted by the crafty British amongst the Generals of the Sikh Army. Cheated of their political rights during the partition of India, the Sikhs are today branded, by their fellow citizens, as traitors and separatists for demanding a measure of autonomy for Punjab, their ancestral homeland.

REFERENCES

“Census of India” Retrieved 4 April 2008