Sri Harmandir Sahib observes blackout after 54 years amid India-Pakistan tension

Amritsar: In a rare development, the lights at Sri Harmandir Sahib in Amritsar were switched off on Wednesday night as part of a citywide blackout drill amid heightened tensions between India and Pakistan.

The exercise, reminiscent of the 1971 India-Pakistan war, was carried out from around 10:30 pm to 11 pm, plunging the revered shrine’s parikrama and surrounding areas into darkness.

The Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) confirmed that the blackout was implemented following instructions from the government and local administration.

SGPC Secretary Partap Singh said that while the lights in the parikrama and surrounding areas were turned off, the illumination in the sanctum sanctorum (Sachkhand), where Guru Sahib is placed, was only dimmed.

He clarified that lights were kept on in rooms where the continuous recitation (Akhand Path) of Sri Guru Granth Sahib was underway, although the doors of those rooms remained closed during the drill to maintain decorum.

Lights were also turned off at Gurdwara Baba Deep Singh Ji Shaheed during the exercise.

This marks the first blackout at Sri Harmandir Sahib in nearly 54 years. Kulwant Singh, former secretary of the SGPC and Vice Manager of Sri Harmandir Sahib during the 1965 war, recalled that similar blackouts were observed during both the 1965 and 1971 wars.