Civic sense: Sikhs raze gurdwara

In a first of its kind move by a religious community, the Punjabi Gurdwara Association in Powai, on Thursday, voluntarily demolished a 45-year-old gurdwara.

The shrine was a major block in the development of the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR).

“It’s amazing that the entire community voluntarily vowed to clear the site. We have offered a space of 6,500 sq ft at an estimated cost of Rs48 lakh, and rental of 22 months for temporary accommodation to the committee as compensation,” said MMRDA official Vandana Suryawanshi.

Jagdish Singh Virdi, president of the association, told DNA that the decision to raze the shrine was was unanimous. “The new gurdwara will come up near the Ayappa Temple opposite the IIT main gate at Powai,” he said.

He added, “There was earlier a slum at the new land. However,  when MMRDA cleared all the encroachments there, we decided to remove the old structure.” The association has already submitted the plan for construction of the gurdwara on the new site to MMRDA.