Introduction To 'Sikh Diaspora Philanthropy In Punjab - Global Giving For Local Good' By Verne A. Dusenbery & Darshan S. Tatla

Diaspora philanthropy--private giving for public good, undertaken by those living away from their ancestral homeland--is an increasingly important social and economic phenomenon in our globalizing world. For over a century, Sikh emigrants have been remitting funds to Punjab for purposes ranging from advancement of family to support of political, religious, and humanitarian causes. This is the first book to assess the overall scale of overseas Sikhs' philanthropic involvement in Punjab, the varying motivations of Sikh diaspora philanthropists, and the differential effects of their philanthropic projects on society.

Chronicling the evolution and changing nature of Sikh diaspora philanthropy, this book highlights its religious and cultural underpinnings. It reviews the different kinds of social investment projects undertaken in different regions of Punjab and examines their role in community development. The essays also highlight the transnational connections and influences created through philanthropic projects.

The final section analyses the overall impact of Sikh diaspora philanthropy in generating social capital and mediating tensions between formal and informal local institutions in the villages and in addressing needs unmet by the government, market, or other civil society organizations.

Bringing together anthropologists, economists, historians, geographers, and sociologists, this volume connects  to wider scholarly and policy coversations about diaspora philanthropy. In the context of socio-economic changes wrought by globalization, it raises certain fundamental questions: is diaspora philanthropy a heroic or selfless intervention or is it a neo-colonial endeavour imposing an outside development agenda?

The book will interest scholars and students of Sikh studies, sociology, history, economics, social anthropology, and diaspora studies and will also find wide readership among policymakers and philanthropists.


About the Authors Of 'Sikh Diaspora Philanthropy In Punjab'

Verne A. Dusenbery is Professor of Anthropology and Chair of the Global Studies Program at Hamline University, Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA.

Darshan S. Tatla is Director, Punjab Centre for Migration Studies, Lyallpur Khalsa College, Jalandhar, Punjab, India.


Preface To 'Sikh Diaspora Philanthropy In Punjab Global Giving For Local Good' By Verne A. Dusenbery & Darshan S. Tatla

Bothe of us, the editors of this volume, having lived or worked for several decades among Sikhs inthe diaspora, have been cognizant of the many means and ends to which Sikhs living outside Punjab have been remitting funds back to the region. As a Sikh living in the United Kingdom, Darshan was himself involved in sending funds to Punjab and was well aware of how others in the diaspora were likewise engaged in sending money back for various family as well as public causes. Van first became aware of the intimate links that many Sikhs in the diaspora maintained with Punjab while conducting research with Sikhs in Vancouver, British Columbia, in the late 1970s. In 1981, while visiting Punjab, Van had the privilege of accompanying a Sikh Canadian returnee, Budh Singh Dhahan, When Budh Singh brought back to his village the first load of bricks for the original hospital wing of what in now one of the premier Sikh diaspora philanthropy (SDP) profects in Punjab, the Guru Nanak Memorial Medical and Educational Trust (discussed by Margaret Walton-Roberts in her chapter in this volume). Thus, began  the interest we came to share in understanding the kind of philanthropy (private giving for public good) represented by Budh Singh's efforts, including what motivates Sikh givers from abroad, what challenges they face, and what effects their projects have for local recipients  in Punjab.

In the mid-1990s, with the reopening of Punjab after the dark period of political violence that engulfed the state from 1978 to 1993, we began corresponding about the possibility of a collaborative project investigating SDP  in Punjab. With Darshan's return to Punjab from England and his subsequent founding of the Punjab Centre for Migration Studies in 2003, our coversations about a collaborative project became more serious , and Van began to mobilize for the possibility of such a study during his next sabbatical. Thus, it was that Van came to spend the 2005-6 academic year in India as a CIES Fulbright Senior Research Scholar affiliated to the Punjab Centre for Migration Studies.

This volume itself is the outgrowth of an international workshop on SDP in Punjab held at Lyallpur Khalsa College in Jalandhar, Punjab, on 30-1 March 2006. The workshop, organized by the co-editors, was co-sponsored by the Punjab Centre for Migration Studies at Lyallpur Khalsa College and by the United States Educational Foundation in India (USEFI). It brought together international scholars, philanthropists, government officials, and journalists to discuss philanthropic projects in India's Punjab state undertaken with support from Sikhs living outside India and/or returned from abroad. The intention of the workshop was to further our collective understanding of the motivations, experiences, and effects of SDP in Punjab. To that end, working sessions included discussions of scholarly papers circulated in advance, a round table discussion with a representative group of philanthropists, site visits to a sample of philanthropic projects within driving distance of Jalandhar, and a concluding session summarizing lessons learned and forwarding suggestions for stake-holders. (See Appendix A for the details of participants in the workshop and recommendations to stakeholders.)

The chapters in this volume include revised versions of scholarly papers written for the workshop, as well as an introduction and a conclusion written specifically for the volume. We are indebted to Lyallpur Khalsa College for generously hosting the workshop and to USEFI for encouraging us to undertake the workshop and for funding the local travel and housing of participants. We are especially grateful to all of the participants who joined us in Jalandhar for the event, a number of whome found their own means of getting to India to be part of the workshop.

In addition to the scholars, philanthropists, government officials, and journalists who joined us for the workshop (and those with whom we had the pleasure of interacting throughout our own research), we would like to extend our special thanks to the following individuals for their help in making the workshop a success: Dr Satish K. Kapoor, Principal, Jaswinder Singh, PA, and members of the executive committee of Lyallpur Khalsa College; Professors Jane E. Schukoske, Executive Director, Dr Girish Kaul, US Programme Director, and the US programme staff of USEFI. In addition, we express our deep appreciation to Mandeep Kaur Tatla and Jasdeep Kaur Tatla for their assistance not only with the workshop itself but also throughout the period of our collaborative reserach.

During the course of our own research project, we gathered  much first-hand data on over 200 projects spread across all districts of Punjab. It would have been appropriate to thank all the people associated with these worthwhile projects, but space does not permit us to list them all. So, we conducted longer interviews and exchanged views.

We are grateful to Budh Singh Dhahan, Ranjit Singh Tut, Gurcharan Singh Shergill, Harjinder Singh Dhanoa, Dr Jaswant Singh, Professor Karamjit Sing Rai, Amarjit Singh (at Kanya Mahavidialya Ferozepore), Amarjit Singh Hansra (of Kamalapura), Dr Ragbir Singh Basi and Dr Dr Gurdev Singh Gill (for Kharaudi), Ms Surjit Kaur Sidhu (for Aur), Bhai Mohinder Singh (of GNNSJ), Dr Inderjit Kaur (of Pingalwara), Amritsar, Dr Gurbachan Singh Bachan, ex-Secretary of the SGPC, Bhag Singh Ankhi, Secretary of Chief Khalsa Diwan, Amritsar, Dr Balbir Singh Saini, Superintendent of Khalsa Orphanage, Nanak Kohli, Kulwinder Singh, Dr A.S. Marwah, Dr Jagjit S. Sanghera (for Bilga Hospital), Gurmej Singh for several projects in Nakodar-Shankar-Jandiala-Phagwara belt, Sant Niranjan Das at Ballan and Brij Lal at Phagwara, Avtar Singh Grewal and Hoshiar Singh Grewal at Sarabha, Mohinder Singh Sidhu for Nanksar sants' role, Dr Waryam Singh Sandhu for Sur Singh Wala and Bhakna, Baba Bhagat Singh for Desh Bhagat Yadghar, Jalandhar, Karam Singh Dhillon and Kashmir Singh Gill at Hasham Shah Memorial Trust, Jagdev Kalan, Amritsar, late Sardar Jawala Singh Grewal, Sohan Singh Pooni, S.R.Heer, Sushil Kaur, Sardar Partap Singh and Dr Kulwinder Singh Bajwa at Sikh History Library at Khalsa College, Amritsar, Karamjit Kaur of FATEH, Sardar Aridaman Singh Dhillon.

We also acknowledge help of various kinds from our colleagues and friends; the list is too long to mention all but we must mention Professor Gurharpal Singh, Sukhbir Singh Chatha, ex-principal of Lyallpur Khalsa College, Dr Krishan Chand and Ambassador Parmjit Singh Sahai, both from Centre for Research in Rural and Industrial Development, Chandigarh, Dr Archana Verma, Gurpreet Maini, Dr Mohinder Singh, Priya Vishwanath, Professor Mark Sidel, Professor Hew McLeod and, Professor Jerry Barrier among friends, Chanchal Manohar Singh Bedi, Surjit Aulakh, Kuldip Singh Hansra, Sujinder Singh Sangha, Dr Balwant Singh Dhillon, Mrs Satinder B.Singh, Capt. Piara Singh. We regret that Shinder Thandi's paper could not be included in this volume, as it is coming out in his forthcoming book.

At Oxford University Press, we thank the anonymous reviewers and the editorial team for providing excellent support. Finally, we thank our families for their forbearance as we have pursued our interest in telling this important story of SDP in Punjab.

Table of Contents of 'Sikh Diaspora Philanthropy in Punjab - Global Giving For Local Good' By Verne A. Dusenbery, Darshan S. Tatla