VANCOUVER -- One of Metro Vancouver’s largest parades is once again not going ahead this year due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
Organizers for the annual Surrey Vaisakhi Khalsa Parade announced Tuesday they are committed to ensuring a “safe and healthy environment” and therefore decided to cancel this year’s event scheduled for April 24.
“It is clear that there is no path for an event the size and magnitude of our parade to occur safely within the next three months,” said Moninder Singh, president of Gurdwara Sahib Dasmesh Darbar, in a news release.
Last year’s Vaisakhi parade was also cancelled, as the province began its ban against large gatherings in the early days of the pandemic.
Organizers call it one of the largest events of its kind in the world, with the day-long celebration typically drawing crowds of up to 500,000 people.
The event marks one of the most important days in the Sikh calendar, the creation of the Khalsa in 1699.
Singh is encouraging would-be attendees to instead celebrate this significant date by spending it with their immediate family.
Organizers said they are hopeful the community will be able to gather again for the parade in 2022.
