Jalandhar: The number of people converting to different religions in India is steadily increasing. The trend can also be seen in Punjab where Christianity is growing and expanding its roots swiftly.
Talking specifically about Punjab, in the past two years, 3.5 lakh Punjabis have left their respective religion and embraced Christianity in hope of better and dignified life. Sikh scholar and researcher Dr. Ranbir Singh stated this based on his survey. According to Dr. Ranbir Singh, people in villages, as compared to urban areas are converting to Christianity in allurement of freebies. According to his survey, in the year 2023-24, around 1.5 lakh people changed their religion, while in 2024-25, 2 lakh people adopted another religion.
According to the 2011 census, Punjab’s population was 2.77 crore, of which 1.26% (around 3.5 lakh) were Christians. Reportedly, In Tarn Taran, the Christian population was 6,137, which increased significantly to 12,436 by 2021. This indicates a 102% increase in the number of people adopting Christianity in Tarn Taran.
In the Gurdaspur district of Punjab, the Christian population has increased by over 4 lakh. Dr. Ranbir Singh mentioned that there is funding for conversions from countries like Pakistan and the USA. In his survey, he noted that in today’s changing society, people are being lured into changing their religion. Hindus, Sikhs, and Muslims are being approached with promises of solutions to their problems through the miracles with promise of dignified and better life once converted into Christianity.
Furthermore, the needs of the underprivileged are being met, and they are being converted to Christianity. Various other incentives are being used to convert poor families. Religious contractors, large institutions, and the administration in Punjab are silently observing all of this. The statistics clearly show that no one in Punjab seems concerned about the rapidly increasing conversions.