Have you visited the Golden temple while you were exploring Bharat? Did you enjoy the delicious langar (food) there? Did that leave you wondering how they manage to feed so many people in one day? If your answer to these questions is a yes, then you have come to the right place. Here, you will get all the information to help with your curiosity about the Golden Temple langar.
What Kind Of Food Is Served In Golden Temple & How?
A wholesome vegetarian meal is served at the Golden Temple. It usually comprises of dal, rice, roti, a vegetable and sweet kheer as a dessert. The meal is absolutely free for everyone who wants to eat there. On average, there are 50,000 people daily, and on important occasions, this number even goes up to a 100,000. They serve food to people in two major dining halls that can host 5000 people at a given time. When people sit there, they are served by the numerous volunteers who quietly serve the people and then politely ask them to make space for the next round of visitors.
Who Organizes, Serves And Cook Food?
It is obvious that serving so many people every single day is no child’s play. However, the efficient workers (sewadars) work tirelessly to make it a success. As many as 90% of the staff working there are volunteers while there are 300 permanent workers who make sure that all the food is cooked properly and delivered at the correct time. The type of volunteers depends on people ’s availability. Some work for the whole day while others dedicate a few hours of their day to volunteer at the Golden temple.
The food is prepared in two different kitchens with several burners at as many as 11 tawas to make rotis. There are a large number of machines for kneading and sieving dough. The place is loaded with large size utensils. The sewadars make all the dishes served here on a normal day. However, on religious occasions or holidays, the Golden Temple receives a high number of visitors, so they use a roti machine that was donated by a devotee from Lebanon. This machine has the capacity to churn out 25,000 rotis in just one hour.
Where Do They Get The Raw Materials To Cook?
Since there are a huge number of people who eat at the Golden Temple every day, it is only obvious that require a large number of raw materials. On average, they need 50 quintals of wheat, 14 quintals of rice, seven quintals of milk, and 18 quintals of dal. This is all consumed in one day. They require as many as 100 gas cylinders to cook this food. Most of these raw materials come from Delhi while some of it is bought locally in Amritsar. They also receive a lot of donation worldwide in both cash as well as kind.
Additionally, they require huge vessels to cook this large amount of food. They cannot work with the normal cooking vessels that are available in the market. Their vessels are so big in size that they can store seven quintals of kheer or even dal in one go!
How Do They Take Care Of Cleanliness?
The sewadars at the Golden temple give a lot of importance to hygiene and cleanliness, so they do not just wash the dining halls and the kitchen before the langar starts but also take extra care of the dishes. After eating, the people handover the dirty plates to the volunteers of the Golden temple. The volunteers, then, take the dishes and wash them at least five times before it is given to another person to use.
These are some of the key points that answer most of the questions about the Langar that happens every single day in the Golden Temple. It is only the dedication and the selfless attitude of the sewadars or the volunteers who make it a success. People who come to exploring India from around the world, visit the Golden Temple and other famous temples in India to witness the amazing coordination between people to make this large everyday event a success.
Bottom Line
The Golden temple is a place that has the capacity to bring out the humility in every person. The massiveness of the temple and the langar that is carried out with simplicity and ease is really commendable. It shows how dedicated people are towards feeding the visitors who come there.
They never discriminate anyone based on caste, creed or religion and feed everyone who visits the Golden temple. It is really a place that stands for spreading love towards everyone. So, when are you visiting the Golden Temple in Amritsar to have your personal langar experience?
