A Sikh man in India is being hailed a hero for using his turban to lower himself into an irrigation canal and rescue a dog from drowning.

Sarwan Singh, 28, said he noticed a group of onlookers pointing into the canal, but was shocked to see nobody helping.

A video shows Singh unravel his turban -- one of the main articles of faith in the Sikh religion that all Sikh men must wear -- and use it to lower himself down the steep embankment.

Once he got within a couple of feet from the dog, Singh, who cannot swim, wrapped the dog as his friends at the top pulled them both back to street level.

"The moment I started taking off my turban, people watching around were shocked. They thought I was disrespecting my faith," Singh told Metro U.K. "But what was important at that point was to save the animal's life."