Punjabi communities across the world celebrated Vaisakhi on Monday 13th April. This time however, leading organisations such as City Sikhs UK have hosted online Vaisakhi celebrations through zoom calls, webinars among other such activities.
In the UK, usually large annual Vaisakhi celebrations are hosted at London’s Trafalgar Square, where more than 30,000 have gathered in past years, and Birmingham’s Handsworth Park, where up to 100,000 attend the event. But in the wake of coronavirus outbreak they have been cancelled besides an annual procession in Southall.
“I want to wish all those celebrating in London and around the world, a happy Vaisakhi. Of course this year it won’t be possible for many Sikh Londoners to mark this sacred festival in the usual way.
“But during this difficult time I believe that we can all learn a huge amount from the selflessness of the Sikh community. From feeding the hungry, to supporting the elderly, your actions are a source of inspiration and hope to so many in these testing times,” said Sadiq Khan, Mayor of London.
Extending his greetings, Prince Charles in a video message posed by Clarence House on Twitter said,
“Vaisakhi diyan lakh lakh badhiyan. In these challenging times, the Sikh community is making an extraordinary and invaluable contribution to the life of this country, and to so many others, just as it has always done.”
