Gurpurab observed with fervour, obeisance paid to Guru Nanak Dev on his birth anniversary

New Delhi, Nov 23: Gurpurab, which marks the birth anniversary of first Sikh guru Guru Nanak Dev, was observed on Friday with great fervour across India.

Scores of devotees thronged gurdwaras of Punjab and Haryana to pay obeisance to Guru Nanak Dev on his birth anniversary. Braving the chill, people from different faiths offered early morning prayers on Gurpurab and took part in 'langars' and 'shabad kirtans'.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends Guruparb Kirtan Darbar at SAD President Sukhbir Singh Badal's residence in Delhi

There was a huge rush of devotees since early morning at the 'Harmandar Sahib' in Amritsar, popularly known as the Golden Temple. A security ring was enforced around all leading Sikh shrines in both the states, including Chandigarh, officials said. In Haryana, devotees thronged gurdwaras at various places, including Karnal, Ambala and Yamunanagar while there washugerush of devotees at Sector 34 Gurdwara in Chandigarh.

Manmohan Singh at Sukhbir Singh Badal's residence in Delhi

Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism, was born in 1469 at Nankana Sahib near Lahore, now in Pakistan. Earlier this week, over 3,000 Sikh pilgrims had left for Pakistanto take part in festivities ahead of the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, with the main function being held on the occasion at Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib. Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar had extended greetings to people on the occasion of Gurpurab.

Fireworks at the Golden Temple in Amritsar

Addressing a gathering at historic town of Sultanpur Lodhi in Kapurthala district, where the first Sikh Guru spentconsiderablepart of his life,Singh launched Friday the year-long celebrations of the 550th 'ParkashPurb' (birth anniversary) of Guru Nanak Dev, calling upon all people to set aside their religious and political differences to join his government in making the commemorative events memorable.

Golden Temple decked up for Gurpurab

On Thursday, Singh had exhorted the people to embrace the ideology propounded by Guru Nanak Dev in its true spirit.

"The message of love, compassion, equality, peace and brotherhood thatguru jipromoted all his life holds extreme relevance even today and the year-long celebrations will help in disseminating the same among the youth, in particular," Amarinder said.

"Let us on this day, vow to come together in the spirit of harmony and humility, as preached by the great guru, to create a peaceful and equitable society," he said.

(Images credit - ANI/Twitter)

OneIndia with PTI inputs