Hundreds of thousands are expected to take to the streets of South Vancouver on Saturday to celebrate Vaisakhi with a day full of music, colourful floats, and food.
Vaisakhi marks the first harvest and the coming of a new year, according to the Vancouver Khalsa Diwan Society, which organizes the parade.
For Sikhs, it also marks the creation of the order of the Khalsa in 1699 — a defining moment in Sikh history which gave the Sikh faith its final form.
The day will begin with speeches at the Khalsa Diwan Temple on Ross Street at 9 a.m. PT with the parade departing the temple at 11 a.m PT.
Organizers estimated around 300,000 people attended last year’s Vaisakhi parade in Vancouver — the first after a three-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
With sunny weather expected, parade marshal Jag Sanghera said the organization is expecting a bigger turnout this year.
“We invite everybody to participate,” he said Friday on CBC’s The Early Edition.
Vaisakhi is marked by colourful processions, as well as the practice of serving free meals to the community in acts of seva and langar, two significant aspects of the Sikh religion.
The parade will take place in the historic Punjabi Market district in South Vancouver from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Road closures in the area will be in effect from 10 a.m. PT to 6 p.m. PT on the following roads:
- Main Street from E. 49th Avenue to SE Marine Drive.
- Fraser Street from E. 41st Avenue to SE Marine Drive.
- Westbound SE Marine Drive from Knight Street to Main Street.
- E. 57th Avenue from Knight Street to Ontario Street.
TransLink says buses will also be rerouted through the area on Saturday.
A larger Vaisakhi parade, one that organizers have previously called the biggest in the world, will take place in Surrey on April 20.