Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate the landmark Kartarpur Corridor today (Saturday) to facilitate the Sikh pilgrims from India into Gurdwara Dera Sahib at Kartarpur in Narowal district of Pakistan.

According to Foreign Office Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal, approximately 10,000 pilgrims are expected to be present on the occasion of the inauguration of the corridor. He said that former Indian cricket star and ex- minister Navjot Singh Sidhu will also be among the participants.

He said that the pilgrims who will visit Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib will arrive and depart from the Corridor, on the same day. He said that this is a dedicated Corridor for the Nanak Naamlevas coming from India and the visitors cannot go to any other place except the Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib.

He said that both Pakistan and India have already a bilateral agreement regarding pilgrims visiting the holy sites, signed in 1974, wherein, nationals of both the countries can visit the holy places on both sides of the border.

Under the same established agreement, he said that almost 4,500 pilgrims from India have been issued visas, which is much beyond the agreed limit. Besides, he added that Pakistan's missions in Australia, Canada, Europe, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, Tanzania, USA, UK, and Uganda, etc, have also issued thousands of visas to the pilgrims. He said that Prime Minister Imran Khan had also announced waiver of service charges of US $20 on 9th and 12th November 2019. Abiding by the PM's commitment, he said that Pakistan will not receive any service charge from pilgrims on these two dates.

"We recall that as special gesture on auspicious occasion of 550th anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak, Prime Minister Imran Khan had announced waiver of requirements of passport and registration of pilgrims 10 days in advance. Unfortunately, Indian side has declined these facilitative measures", he added.

The Corridor is being opened on the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev Ji beginning from Tuesday.

The landmark project initiated on the directives of Prime Minister Imran Khan as a peace-building measure for the region and to promote interfaith harmony is entirely funded and executed by Pakistan as a gift for Sikh community.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019