Balbir Singh (scholar)

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Balbir Singh (13 December 1896 – 1 October 1974) was an Indian Sikh scholar and the brother of Bhai Vir Singh. He was born in Amritsar, Punjab, in the family of Katra Garba Singh. His father, Charan Singh, died when Balbir was young, and he was raised by his elder brother Vir Singh, whom he treated as a father.

After his early schooling in Amritsar, Balbir Singh earned an M.Sc. from Government College, Lahore, and later went to England to obtain a Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of London. He returned to India in 1923 and chose a path different from government service.

From 1925 to 1935, he served as Principal of Cambridge Preparatory School in Dehradun. In 1937 he joined P&S Bank, became Managing Director in 1947, and held that position until 1960. Balbir Singh was deeply involved in literary and scholarly work, often helping his brother Bhai Vir Singh with their projects. He wrote a history of the Singh Sabha Movement and published Charan Hari Visthar, a two‑volume life history of his family and father. He also contributed to the compilation of Guru Granth Kosh.

A prolific writer, Balbir Singh produced many works on Sikh religious philosophy in Punjabi and English. He owned a large collection of about 1,000 rare books at his Dehradun home, Panchbati, which is now a memorial library and art gallery named Balbir Singh Sahitya Kendra and donated to Punjabi University Patiala. One of his major projects was its encyclopedic dictionary of Guru Granth Sahib, Nirukat. He published the first volume in his lifetime and continued to work on the second volume until his death in 1974, by which time the second volume had been sent to the press. Punjabi University Patiala later published four more volumes according to his guidelines.

He started a quarterly literary magazine, Panchbati Sandesh, which has continued under his daughter Mohinder Kaur and Punjabi University Patiala. The Balbir Singh Sahitya Kendra in Dehradun houses his memorial library and art gallery and is entrusted with publishing the remaining Nirukat volumes.