Sikh flag hosted in Canada’s Capital Ottawa on Sikh Heritage Month

Ottawa, Canada: On Sunday, 2nd April, 2016, the Ottawa Sikh Sangat hosted the Nishan Saibh at the Ottawa City Hall. This is worth noting that Ottawa is the Capital of Canada and it has acknowledge our existence and identity prior to any other nation on this planet. The Nishan Shaib will fly at the City Hall for the entire month of April, 2016.

The Nishan Saibh was hoisted at the Ottawa City Hall by the Ottawa Sikh Sangat to commemorate the commencement of the month long Sikh Heritage Month celebrations for the entire month of April 2016.

Ottawa will be home to an exhibit based festival that will look to immerse audiences in the rich history of the Sikh people in Canada and abroad through a multitude of art forms. The opening ceremony of the exhibition will be held by Mayor Jim Watson on April 15th at Ottawa City Hall. People will have free access to the entire exhibit in addition to witnessing the first unveiling of world famous artist Kanwar Singh’s newest master piece.

On April 16th, the exhibit will be moving to the Ottawa Gurdwara and will remain there until April 17th. Visitors in attendance will experience fierce live martial arts demonstrations, beautiful art work, live art battles, interactive presentations and a bustling marketplace full of vendors and Sikhism inspired non-profit organizations.

ABOUT SIKH HERITAGE MONTH –

In 2013, the Ontario government passed and received royal assent on a bill that officially recognized April as Sikh Heritage Month. Since 2014, the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) has celebrated Sikh Heritage Month. History was made, in 2015, when the Sikh Community partnered with the Peel Art Gallery Museum & Archives (PAMA) in Brampton to celebrate Sikh Heritage Month through a month long series of exhibits, attracting thousands of attendees.

For the first time ever, the Sikh Heritage Month celebrations will coming to the Canada’s Capital from April 15th to the 17th.

Each year, Sikh Heritage Month focuses on a central theme, which provides consistency, focus and most importantly direction to the months’ celebrations. This year the theme is “The Spirit of the Sikhs”. Through this centralized theme Sikhs aim to illustrate core aspects of Sikhism and celebrate the accomplishments of Canadian Sikh’s through many different forms of art.