Welcome to

HCC London

HCC London

HCC London

HCC London

HCC London

.

.

.

Mission:

To promote and preserve the Hindu religious and cultural heritage and to strive for inter-religious harmony, understanding, and universal brotherhood among Canadians of all ethnic groups and persuasions.

Objectives:

  • To undertake activities conducive to the Hindu Way of Life.
  • To hold regular religious services embracing the full spectrum of Hindu Spiritual Beliefs.
  • To provide an opportunity for maximum fraternization and integration among Canadians of all walks of life and religious beliefs.
  • To promote inter-religious harmony and understanding by periodically inviting teachers, theologians, and philosophers of different faiths to speak at the Centre and by providing speakers to do likewise elsewhere.
  • To celebrate Hindu festivals such as Holi, Ram Nawmi, Janam Ashtmi, Diwali, etc.
  • To establish and develop a resource library on religion, philosophy, culture, music, art and languages, etc.
  • To provide a place for social functions such as marriages, ceremony, dances, cultural shows, etc.
  • To organize schools for children to be exposed to the tenets of Hinduism.
  • To arrange for Hindi and Indian music, wherever possible, to be taught to interested persons.

The Constitution

Please read this important notice carefully as it relates to your membership with The Hindu Cultural Centre of London Ontario

We have recently revised the HCC Constitution. The Constitution was circulated to the membership for their consideration, and all of the members of the HCC were invited to a special meeting dedicated to discussing and approving this document.

This meeting took place on November 14, 2004. The Constitution was accepted with a few minor amendments which were made at that meeting, and our revised and updated Constitution comes into effect as of January 01, 2005.

As of January 01, 2005, all members must pay their membership dues for 2005, by January 15 of that calendar year, in order to be eligible to vote at the Annual General Meeting.

This meeting shall be held on a pre-arranged date between February 01, and March 31, of that calendar year according to the HCC Constitution.

The H.C.C. Constitution   Click Here To Download 

The HCC Membership Form is a PDF file and may be viewed online in your browser or saved to your computer. Click on the link to be prompted to view the file or Right-Click on the filename and select ‘Save Target As’ to save the file to your computer.

Note: Please note that to view the Newsletters you need to have the Acrobat Reader. So make sure that you have Acrobat Reader already installed on your machine. If not please * Download Acrobat Reader *

Contact Us: hcclondon@hcclondon.ca

The History

Select passages in the following historical perspective of the HCC have partly been adapted from a speech originally delivered by Mr. Chetram Singh, a past president of HCC, on the occasion of the 13th anniversary of the opening of the Mandir.

In January 1971, The Hindu Cultural Centre of London Ontario, (HCC), was founded and, with the permission of the University of Western Ontario, religious services were held at the student’s lounge basement of Sommerville House. There were 8 founding members of the HCC. In April 1972, a formal association, the Hindu Cultural Centre was formed. On June 17, 1972, HCC became a registered Canadian Charitable Organization. On March 14, 1982 HCC’s Constitution was revised. In 1987, the organization was renting the Legionnaire’s Hall in Byron.

Also in 1987, the then Board had purchased the 3.2 acres of Land for $100,000. The prayer services were moved to the Medway Hall. Building, Finance and the Festivals Committees were formed. Within months of the new Board assuming office, the question as to whether the HCC should build a Mandir or a Community Centre was democratically resolved by the Membership which voted in favour of a Mandir.

A very prominent London architect, Desh Malhotra (who also belongs to the Sikh community) was approached to help design the Mandir. Mr. Malhotra magnanimously offered his services free of charge. The objective was to construct a building that would accommodate 400 people in the prayer hall with similar space in the basement. The estimated cost, assuming that we did the internal work, was $400,000 for 6000 sq ft of space, 3000 sq ft in the basement, and 3000 sq ft in the main prayer hall. The Prayer Hall of the Mandir was designed based on the grid and proportions of the Brahm Eshvara temple at Bhuvanseshwar in Orissa.

On June 26th, 1989, a Sod Turning ceremony was performed. Construction started in October 1989 when the Board started a massive Fund Raising Drive. A team of HCC Members worked voluntarily on weekends, holidays and some nights to complete including all of the electrical work which was done by a Member of the Community.

On Diwali Day November 18, 1990, in just one year after construction had begun, the Mandir was opened by Dr B. Doobay from Toronto. At the time of opening, the cost of the building $600,000 was fully paid for.

A great number of people have contributed their time, energy and dedication to the creation and formation of, the Hindu Cultural Centre of London Ontario. To these individuals we are eternally grateful and we hope that we may take the legacy we have been provided and strive to improve our future and that of our children. We hope and pray that with your guidance and assistance, we may all live to enjoy our Mandir for many years to come.