Ravinder Singh Khalsa, a humanitarian, is a man of courage who has dedicated his life to serving humanity. He is always there to help people in need, whether the cause is a natural disaster, oppression, war, or famine around the world. He helps people regardless of nationality, religion, color, or language. He has been working tirelessly with his team to provide relief to those suffering around the globe.
Early Life
Born on the 16th of September 1969, he grew up in a religious family in rural Punjab. Ravi Singh was 11 years old when his family relocated from the Mundian Jattan in Punjab to West London's suburbs. He graduated from Slough and Eton Church of England Business and Enterprise College. Singh drifted away from his Sikh roots over the course of the following ten years in the new country as he adjusted to a new language and way of life, losing both his beard and turban and his religion in the process.
Ravi Singh Khalsa reconnected to Sikhism at the age of 25, after a chance encounter with Sardar Charanjit Singh Channi, a childhood friend who was victimized and brutally tortured to death during police killings, in a book he was reading.
Shaken by this revelation he decided to put his turban back on and hasn’t taken it off since. The moment proved to be a turning point in his life. He pledged to dedicate his life abiding by the Sikh principles of ‘sarbat da bhala’ or well-being for all.
He was greatly influenced by Bhai Kanhia Ji, who served water to the injured during the war at Anandpur Sahib in 1704, regardless of which side they were fighting on. He simply knew they were wounded and needed help and saw God’s light in everyone. Ravi Singh wants to take forward the legacy of Bhai Kanhaiya Ji and help everyone regardless of where they are from or what religion they belong to.
Khalsa Aid: Origin and its Long History of Relief Work
His mission as a Sikh humanitarian began in 1999 when he came up with the idea of bringing the ideals of the Khalsa to regions of the world that needed it most to rekindle people's faith in humanity.
Khalsa Aid, the first ever cross-border international humanitarian aid organization, was started by Ravi Singh Khalsa on the 300th birth anniversary of Khalsa. He took it as an opportunity for the community to reflect on the core teachings of their faith.
The ideology that inspired him the most to start the Khalsa Aid was "Sarbat da Bhalla" meaning "well-being for all" -recognizing and helping those in need regardless of race, religion, or border. “Be Human, it is not that difficult” is the message he wants to deliver to the entire world.
The works of the charity of Khalsa Aid are in no way restricted to Sikhs. Khalsa Aid helps everyone irrespective of their faith, religion, color, creed, or sex.
Khalsa Aid -Relief Projects undertaken:
Since 1999, Khalsa Aid has been rendering humanitarian service to people around the globe. Volunteers have been there to help, whether it be for victims of civil wars or natural calamities. Here is an overview of some of the Khalsa Aid relief missions-
WATER4AFRICA - GAMBIA
In many communities in Africa, access to clean drinking water was becoming increasingly difficult due to changing climate. Khalsa Aid set up the Water4Africa Project to ensure that everyone should have access to safe and clean water. The members of Khalsa Aid, Amandeep Singh, the Khalsa Aid coordinator, and Chamkor Singh, a long-term volunteer, worked to make this a reality for the locals in the Gambia. Water boreholes and solar-powered water pumps were installed. . The villagers no longer have to walk miles and have access to safe drinking water.
MADAGASCAR FAMINE RELIEF
The country has been plagued by natural disasters for years, but June 2021 brought the worst drought in 40 years. 1.2 million people suffered from food insecurity, and 400,000 more from famine in the Southern regions. As reported by the World Food Programme, this was the first-ever global famine caused solely by climate change. According to the United Nations, people were consuming mud, insects, clay, and ashes to relieve chronic hunger.
An operation for Madagascar Famine Relief was established by Khalsa Aid in November 2021. In partnership with Lion's Club District 417 and The Food Bank of Madagascar, they provided vital assistance in the deep South.
Initially, this relief action initiative delivered essential food products to families across the South. More than 200 families received them each day, enough to sustain them for at least two weeks. A deliberate effort was made to support the local economy and farming trade by purchasing everything locally.
INDONESIA – EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI RELIEF
In October 2018, an earthquake (7.5 magnitudes) struck off the coast of Sulawesi, Indonesia, causing a tsunami that devastated Palu and Dongola. The first NGO on the ground was Khalsa Aid International. To ensure the aid reaches where it is most needed, Khalsa Aid worked closely with the local population. The help they provided included -
- Immediately delivered 500 tarpaulins
- Established langars (free community kitchens) in Palu and Dongola.
- Provided fresh food to four makeshift shelters
- Blankets were provided
KERALA-INDIA FLOODS RELIEF
During the worst flooding in nearly 90 years in the southern Indian state of Kerala, more than one million people were left homeless or trapped. The shutdown of many water treatment plants resulted in poor access to clean water, especially in northern districts. A team of 30 volunteers from across India responded quickly to the worst-affected areas.
Using its India volunteer base, Khalsa Aid had been able to:
- Provided hot meals to 15,000 people every day
- Packed and distributed essential day packs, including toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, sanitary towels, mosquito nets, medical kits, and clothing.
- Packed and distributed food parcels consisting of dal, rice, tea, salt, sugar, etc.
Public donations of 500 tonnes of aid items were received from Patiala, Jalandhar, Delhi, Raipur, Gwalior, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and other cities.
Some other Projects
Turkey Earthquake (1999)
Congo Volcanic Eruption (2002)
Afghanistan Relief Work (2003)
Tsunami Islands Earthquake (2004)
Pakistan Earthquake (2005)
Indonesia Earthquake & Cyclone (2006)
Haiti Earthquake (2010)
Syria Civil War (2011)
Kenya Refugee Camps (2011)
Philippines Typhoon (2013)
Iraq Refugee Camp (2014)
United Kingdom Floods (2014)
In the year2015, when Iraq and Syria were in a major state of disorder, Langar Aid, an extension of Khalsa Aid, collaborated with locals to provide fresh bread to nearly 14,000 Yazidi refugees daily. Langar Aid set up a bakery because IS fighters were destroying any food coming in for the Yazidis. On the Lebanon-Syrian border, the organization helped refugees by running a school for 5,000 local children.
In 2016, Ravi's team sent 6000 water bottles to help stranded drivers in the Dover traffic jam. Some motorists were stuck on the M20 for as long as 15 hours.
Racial attack on his turban at Vienna International Airport
According to a media report, Ravi Singh faced a racial slur in Austria by a woman staffer deployed at the Austria airport on August 16, 2019, when she joked about finding a bomb in his turban.
Singh was confronted at Vienna International Airport when he was returning to the UK after helping Yazidi women who were enslaved by ISIS in Iraq. He walked through the metal detector at the airport while changing flights, but a member of staff then insisted on scanning his turban with a handheld device. When he inquired whether there was an issue, one of the security guards said, "Yes, we discovered explosives."
Pained and offended by the remark, Singh stated that education is a far better way than punishment. Ravi Singh went on to say that although he does not want any action taken against her, but has asked the airport officials to sit with the security guard and apprise her of the Sikh faith. He added that sacking the person would not make him happy. In his view, it is never a good idea to respond to hatred with hatred. It would just incite greater animosity.
A Vienna Airport spokesman responded to Ravi Singh's tweet by stating that they are looking into the issue. They sincerely regretted the incident and that it does not align with how they viewed customer service.
Singh’s Twitter Account banned
A ban was imposed on the Twitter account of Khalsa Aid founder Ravi Singh on the 3rd of July 2022, His account was ‘withheld’ in response to a legal demand. Ravi Singh posted a picture of the account on Facebook and wrote, “My Twitter account has been banned in India! This is the real face of democracy under the BJP!! Banning Sikh social media accounts won’t stop us from raising our voices! We will only get louder!”
Khalsa Aid provided logistical support to the farmers' protest led by the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) in 2020. The efforts of the Khalsa Aid led people from all across the globe to know about and support the farmer protest Movement. Khalsa Aid volunteers provided protesting farmers from across India with shelter, clothing, food, first aid, hygiene products, and water at the decampment site by the Delhi border in India.
In 2021, Khalsa Aid was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize for its humanitarian work. The Nobel nomination was made by Canadian MP Tim Uppal, Mayor of Brampton Patrick Brown, and the MPP for Brampton South Prabmeet Singh Sarkaria.
Singh featured in BBC Documentary
In 2016, the BBC produced a documentary on Ravi called "The Selfless Sikh" that followed his travels to northern Iraq and showed how he helped Yazidi families who had fled their homes to escape the atrocities of the Islamic State. The movie follows Singh as he distributes relief to Yazidi refugees living in makeshift camps just 70 kilometers from the IS stronghold of Mosul, deep within Iraqi Kurdistan. In this documentary, he discusses his hardships while performing outreach help work for his organization.
Awards and Accolades
- In Sep 2018, at a ceremony in the British Parliament, received 'The Award Of Excellence and Achievement' from the Punjabi Society Of British Isles.
- He refused the nomination for the 'Indian of the Year Award for his humanitarian contributions because he does not identify himself as an Indian but as a Punjabi or Khalsa in May 2018.
- At a national gala dinner in Maryland, USA, in the year Dec 2017, he was awarded the Bhagat Singh Thind Community Empowerment Award.
- In Sep 2017, he received the 'International Sensation Award' in Surrey, Canada at Darpan Awards ceremony.
- Awarded Sikh of the Year 2014 at an award ceremony in Amritsar in December 2014
Ravi Singh Khalsa believes that Khalsa Aid is a way of life, not a job. “Faith plays a big part in my work. But we need to go beyond faith and into humanity. You can learn a lot by being human,” he says. For him there is no stopping, he goes above and beyond, offering unwavering service, helping people, and upholding the essence of the principles of the Sikh faith.