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From Gurmeet Singh
The Creator of Four Multimedia Sikh Museums Sets World Record
Chandigarh, Dec. 31, 2010
Dr Raghbir Singh Bains
Tale of Dr. Bains from Rags to Laurels
An accomplished community activist, drug therapist, celebrated encyclopaedist, renowned museologist and a distinguished lifetime achiever, Dr. Raghbir Singh Bains set world record by setting the four ‘Multimedia Sikh Museums’ in the world in a short period of 6 years. It took 25 years for Dr Bains to complete this splendid project. Dr. Bains was globally applauded when he set up the first of its kind, museum on top notch technology, at Khadur Sahib in 2004.
The purpose behind setting the multifaceted museums has been to provide information on the Sikh faith, fostering the concept of Oneness of God, universal brotherhood, diversity, promote multiculturalism, mutual tolerance and to educate the present and future generations with a deeper understanding of the beliefs, history, culture and heritage of Sikhism. Dr. Bains came to lime light in the world as a Sikh scholar when first of its kind ‘Encyclopaedia of Sikhism’ authored by him on multimedia technology was unveiled in the Parliament House by Honourable Jean Chretien, the Prime Minister of Canada in 1997.
Dr. Bains was born to mother, Sardarni Pritam Kaur and father Sardar Naginder Singh Bains in 1936 in the village of Dagana Kalan, District Hoshiarpur. He grew up in his parental village Manak Dheri. His mother set his goals in childhood and required of his son to pay back the debt of his forefathers who sacrificed their lives to preserve human liberty, equality and fraternity. Brought up in impoverishment, Raghbir Singh started voluntary work by cleaning village streets with a group of his peers at the age of ten. He lived in extreme pressure of poverty from childhood. As an adolescent, Raghbir Singh used to spend after-school hours in grazing buffalos in village pastures to support livelihood of his parental family. As luck would have been, parents withdrew him from studies after matriculation. However, Mr Bains passed F.A. from Government College Tanda Urmur by seeking donations from college staff.
Family circumstances became extremely challenging for Mr Bains. Groomed by the financial state of affairs, he started his career as a teacher in 1954 on a meagre salary of 45 rupees a month. It was a daily routine for Raghbir Singh to travel 20 kilo meters daily on foot, to go to work and thereafter to attend an educational academy in Jalandhar to pursue further studies. Due to prudence and determination, he did his Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Education and Master of Arts degree from Punjab University, India during his service with Northern Railway which he joined in 1957. While serving as Taxation Inspector with the Government of Punjab since 1971, Dr Bains obtained the degree of LL.B from Guru Nanak Dev University, Punjab in the year 1982.
Raghbir Singh Bains moved to Canada in 1990, to join his family and pursue better opportunities to spread the valuable philosophy of Sikhism. He earned drug-counselling certification from different institutions in Canada and the USA. He earned his Ph.D. from a recommended institution located in USA in 2002, at the age of 67, on world religions and world cultures. He also pursued research work on HIV-AIDS in Tanzania, Uganda and Kenya to create awareness about the fatal disease..
Dr. Bains is a unique and special ‘block builder’ of the community. He is an institution in himself. He visited many countries to authenticate his research work on social evils. He is the author of many recognized books. He has produced many multimedia information packages on drug addiction, rapes, prostitution, AIDS, foeticide and domestic violence. He believes in positive race relations, and is tirelessly working to promote co-operative and integrated living, to achieve the preservation of universal peace and prosperity. He was nominated on various advisory committees, by the local and provincial Governments of British Columbia, to share his life experiences with others. He worked as drug therapist, manager and Chairman of the Tribunal of ‘GAIN Act’ in British Columbia, Canada. Due to constant hard work, his name proudly appears in the ‘Canadian WHO is WHO’ book.
Dr. Bains is a tireless volunteer, community activist and educator who brought fair name to the society by promoting socio-cultural understanding and mutual respect amongst the diverse communities in the world. He organised and addressed hundreds of seminars and interactive workshops on social evils like drugs, rapes, prostitution, foeticide, domestic violence, honour killing of woman and HIV-AIDS etc in countries like USA, Canada, England, Australia, New Zealand, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Fiji, Norway, Singapore, Malaysia and India. He is a known mentor and role model who spent thousands of hours with youth to create awareness on various aspects of positive life.
Dr. Bains is the creator of world's first Multimedia Sikh Museum, a high-tech interactive journey through 500 years of Sikh culture and history. It was initially set up by Dr. Bains at Khadur Sahib in Punjab on April 16, 2004 by using audio, video, animations, graphics, text, top notch robotic and touch screen technology for the first time in the history of museums. The second museum in the series, was set up in Jalandhar, in Punjab on 29th February, 2008. The city of Mississauga, in Canada, became the 3rd center to house the Multimedia Sikh Museum on 10th October, 2010. Within a short period of less than two months, the 4th Museum has been set up at Gurdwara Bandi Chhod Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh (India) which was inaugurated by Honourable Jyotiraditya Scindia, the State Minister for Commerce and Industry, India on December 4, 2010.
Thousands of visitors from all walks of life crowed the museums every day to seek awareness about Sikh religion, history, culture and heritage of the fifth largest faith of the world whose followers numbering around 26 millions live in 161 countries of the world.
The museums also contain animated and interactive games and academic courses for teaching of English, Mathematics, Social Science and general knowledge designed for school goers.
A gutsy and humble Dr Bains, has been globally honoured with hundreds of awards, accolades and titles by different governments and non government organisations in the world.
75-year-old, Dr. Raghbhir S Bains, grandparent, husband and father, and also a whiz with modern day technology, is a legendary pillar in society and most of all an open-minded scholar, with eminent academic excellence and a loyal and committed community activist, especially in today’s global society. He feels happy in serving the needy, poor and the sick.
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