Amritsar: The ardent dream of six Sikhs from Malaysia came true recently when they arrived in the Holy City on their motorbikes after traversing 6,100 km through rough weather and terrain. "All my fatigue disappeared when I entered the city of the Golden Temple. I can't describe the feeling in words," one of the bikers Gurwinder Singh said.
An insurance agent by profession, Gurwinder said that they had to wait years to get required permissions, especially from the Myanmar government. The group usually covered 350-400 km everyday. "It was our heartfelt desire to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple and an excitement that never let us get tired," he said.
Another member of the expedition, Ravin Singh, a lawyer, said they spent nearly Rs 500,000 each on their 17-day trip from Malaysia to India. "There were difficult times on our way to India, especially heavy rains in Malaysia and Myanmar and bad roads, but nothing deterred us. Our mission was to seek blessings of the Almighty at the Golden Temple," he said.
The group began their tour from Petalingjays in Malaysia with another aim of spreading the message of world peace and passed through wide swathes of Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and India before reaching their dream destination.
"People here are very cooperative and friendly. However, roads and sanitation have much scope for improvement in India," said another biker Resham Singh, who works in an automobile company. He said they had to spend a night in a forest in Burma. "That was an unforgettable experience," he said.
Gurwinder said that there were 115 gurdwaras in Malaysia that followed the Nanakshahi calendar adopted by the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee. However, he said there shouldn't be any confusion over the dates for observing Sikh religious festivals. He said they would leave for home by air and would send their bikes by ship.
