- By Rohan Batta.
According to history, our community has played an important role in India's Trans regional trade under the Mughal Empire. With the Mughal patronage, our forefathers adopted administrative and military roles outside the Punjab region as well. We are proudly among the most important merchant communities of early modern India.
Even during the Muslim conquest, our forefathers clung to their heritage. With the help of education and knowledge, we were able to survive even in difficult times of aggression and transformation. Our forefathers stepped into the field of trade and business.
The tradition of doing business has continued since then. Most businessmen from the Punjabi region are mostly Khatris, such as the Mahindras of Mahindra and Mahindra; the Thapars of the Karam Chand Thapar group; the Nandas of Escorts; the Kapoors of Atlas Cycle Industries and many others.
We follow the gotra system and each gotra follows a particular sutra of a particular shakha or branch of one of the 4 Vedas. This system is one of the uniqueness of our community.
While most the members of our community are Hindu, some are also Sikh, some Muslim and even a small minority are Jain. Members of all these faiths collectively form one community. In modern times, we play a significant role in the Indian economy, serving as businessmen, civil and government administrators, landlords and military officials.
It is a notable fact that Guru Nanak was a member of our Vedi clan. The last six gurus, including Guru Govind Singh, were also members of our community.
Dr. Manmohan Singh is also a Khatri among other famous personalities such as Mohan Singh oberoi founder of the multi-billion dollar chain of oberoi hotels and many others.
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