Ontario Khalsa Darbar

In 1973, Ontario's Sikh community purchased a 1.9 acre plot of farmland in Mississauga for the intention of constructing a gurdwara there. It was officially started in 1978 in the farmhouse that stood at the property. By 1982, the gurdwara had transformed into a mobile building. On 10 April 1982, the foundation of a proper gurdwara structure was started. Steadily, more and more money was raised and land was purchased and a building was created in 1988. The 25,000 sq ft gurdwara was officially inaugurated on 25 June 1989. The opening ceremony in 1989 drew a crowd of 40. In 1993, an additional 25 acres was purchased for expansion, which was followed by an 11.5 acre purchase and expansion in 1995. By 13 July 1997, the site had been expanded by a size of 110,000 sq ft. The next year in 1998, a 135-ft tall Nishan Sahib flag was installed at the gurdwara. In 2001, the Nagar Kirtan (which celebrates Viasakhi) had a crowd of nearly 120,000 people. In 2003, a large amount of sand was excavated at the site to prepare for future expansion. In 2019, a new kitchen had been built, as was the East Hall Extension. Kiratpur Park was opened in 2022, which provides the local Sikh community a location to disperse ashes of their deceased. In 2023–24, numerous halls within the complex were refurbished and an elevator was installed. The current projects of the gurdwara are a West Hall Extension, a landscaping initiative at the intersection of Dixie and Derry, and the building of a bridge spanning Etobicoke Creek. The temple has been the subject of several controversies such as a donation to the African National Congress in 1990, a dispute over whether Sikh marriages can be performed in a hotel which serves alcohol and meat, and when a Sikh priest stayed at the temple, thus defying a deportation order.