THOUSANDS of people lined Southampton's streets yesterday (April 9th) for the city's annual Vaisakhi celebrations.

The city was filled with colour, song and prayer as city leaders joined hundreds of members of the Sikh community for the traditional festivities.

Among those attending this year's celebrations were Mayor of Southampton Councillor Edwina Cook and the Rev Ian Johnson, Rector of Southampton and member of the city's Council of Faiths as well as the city's two MP's John Denham and Alan Whitehead.

This year festivities were a week early - the date itself falls on April 14 but organisers brought the celebrations forward so as not to clash with Easter.

Traditional hymns were sung and prayers read as hundreds of the city's Sikhs, many in brightly coloured traditional dress, gathered for the celebrations. A colourful procession - the Nagar Kirtan - started from the Gudwara Singh Sabha in Cranbury Avenue and wound its noisy way through the city visiting all four of Southampton's Sikh temples.

Gudwaras were brightly decorated with bunting, ribbons and balloons for the event.

Vaisakhi celebrates the formation of the Sikh nation, known collectively as the Khalsa (the Pure Ones) by the last of the living Gurus.

It also marks the beginning of the Sikh New Year and the arrival of spring which is when farmers in the Punjab reap their harvest and enjoy the wealth of their new crop.

Vaisakhi has been celebrated in Southampton for the last 16 years and organisers say the festivities bring the community together to celebrate their involvement and partnerships.

Speeches were given by members of the community, including Rev Johnson who spoke of the values of Sikhism and Christianity including caring for neighbours and voluntary services to the community.

Organiser John Roath of the Southampton Council of Gudwaras said: "The goals we had were to put together a festival where everybody could come along and enjoy it and walk away and say 'Wow!'.

"We also wanted to send the message for the citizens of Southampton to say you are welcome to walk into our temples if you want to taste a different culture.

"The message of Sikhism, which is about equality, diversity and humanity, came across as well from the festival."

Mr Roath estimated that around 8,500 people from Southampton and the surrounding area and as far away as London, attended the celebrations.