Panjab Radio & Sikh Relief raise over £100k for charity

The UK’s only national Punjabi-speaking station, Panjab Radio, has raised over £100,000 in a 48-hour radiothon earlier this year.

Panjab Radio’s Managing Director Surjit Singh Ghuman MBE invited the Sikh Relief to Panjab Radio studios in Springfield Road, Hayes, to collect a cheque for the record-breaking amount of £101,268.81 donated by the listeners of Panjab Radio during a marathon 48-hour phone-in in September 2016. A similar 16-hour broadcast took place in 2015, which saw over £70,000 raised.

Several leading figures of the community joined the members of staff of Sikh Relief and Panjab Radio for the cheque presentation ceremony. Present among them were; Varinder Sharma MP for Southall, Councillor Surinder Singh Purewal, Chaman Lal Chaman, Sewa Singh Lalli, Baldev Singh (Sikh Council) and Gurpreet Singh (Kesri Lehar).

Varinder Sharma MP said, “Two of the projects I have seen Sikh Relief do a fantastic job in and are much needed are the Prisoner project and the Environmental project. Both are at the heart of the Sikh Community and it is wonderful to see how much success Sikh Relief have achieved.”
Chairmain Balbir Singh Bains said, “I am truly humbled at the overwhelming response of the general public, I remember the days when people would be reluctant to even speak about the plight of Sikh political prisoners. Today, seeing so many people supporting and encouraging the work we do, I have witnessed a shift in the way people talk about and raise awareness regarding the work we do and it makes everything Sikh Relief does worthwhile.”

Surjit Singh Ghuman MBE said, “The £101,268.81 raised will improve the lives of many in India and across the world, so on their behalf, we’d like to say a big thank you to our listeners for their incredible generosity and making our 2017 Appeal such a success.”

Sikh Relief is a UK registered humanitarian aid charity, with its primary aim being the legal and family welfare of Sikh political prisoners languishing in India’s jails. Other core projects undertaken by Sikh Relief include children’s education, disability aid, care of the elderly, dharam parchaar and environmental initiatives.

Panjab Radio started broadcasting on SKY in September 2000 and is now broadcasting nationally on DAB Digital Radio and 1584AM in East/North London.