On Wednesday, the first batch of 28 Indian Sikhs, including women, arrived in Pakistan to take part in the annual commemoration of the birth of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev on Friday. Similarly, over 2,500 Indian Sikhs also arrived via the Wagah border crossing.
The Indian Punjab chief minister (Channi) along with his delegation is also scheduled to visit Darbar Sahib on Thur s day, Karta rpur Pro ject Management Unit chief executive officer Muh a m mad Latif said.
Latif also told the Dawn newspaper that over 100 Indian pilgrims were expected to visit the gurdwara on Thursday.
The Kartarpur Corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district.
Gurpurab, which marks the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, will be celebrated on November 19.
Till Wednesday, over 2,500 Sikh pilgrims have arrived via the Wagah border.
The pilgrims left for Nankana Sahib soon after their arrival to participate in the main event at Gurdwara Janam Asthan on Friday, Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) spokesperson Amir Hashmi told the Dawn newspaper.
All the visiting Sikhs from India and elsewhere will be facilitated for travelling to Kartarpur sahib, he added.
Pilgrimage to the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara was suspended in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Indian government reopened the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor from its side on Wednesday.
India signed the Kartarpur corridor agreement with Pakistan on October 24, 2019.
Under the pact, Indian pilgrims of all faiths are allowed to undertake round the year visa-free travel through the 4.5-km-long passage.
In November 2019, Prime Minister Imran Khan had formally inaugurated the Kartarpur Corridor as part of the commemoration of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak at a colourful ceremony, paving the way for Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit one of their religion's holiest sites in Pakistan without needing a visa.
The Foreign Office (FO) in a statement after the second meeting of officials of India and Pakistan said that experts of both sides also discussed technical details of the Kartarpur Corridor, including the alignment and other details of the proposed corridor.
The corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Pakistan's Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district and facilitate visa-free movement of Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit Kartarpur Sahib, which was established in 1522 by Sikh faith founder Guru Nanak Dev.
"Pakistan has decided to allow 5000 pilgrims per day (to be increased as capacity allows) throughout the year except for closure on administrative or other basis which will be informed in advance,' the statement said.
To further facilitate the pilgrims, Pakistan is building walkways to permit travel by foot from the start. Pilgrims may travel individually or in groups, preferably of 15 people each, it said.
The FO said that the decision to allow maximum pilgrims was taken in line with Prime Minister Imran Khan's commitment to operationalise the corridor for the 550th anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.
During their talks, both sides had in-depth and productive discussions on the proposed draft agreement and agreed to expeditiously finalise the modalities for operationalising the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor in time for the 550th anniversary celebrations.
"Pakistan agreed to the Indian request to construct a bridge in the second phase after the 550 anniversary celebrations. The bridge will be constructed in phase 2 due to time constraints with a creek pathway constructed in the interim period," said the FO.
The meeting built up on the discussion from the first meeting held in Atari, India on March 14, 2019, it said.
The Pakistan delegation planted a sapling to commemorate the spirit of cooperation and friendship of the Kartarpur initiative.
By Sajjad Hussain
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided to add a religious tourism category to the online visa system for the Sikh pilgrims, applying to visit Kartarpur, the Dawn newspaper reported.
"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided that two separate categories of visa applications will be entertained by the ministry; one would be for Sikh pilgrims of Indian origin living elsewhere in the world, while the other would be for Sikh pilgrims based in India," the report said.
An amendment in the policy to make room for the proposed steps will be sought by the foreign ministry from the Cabinet, it said.
However, all religious tourism visa requests for the Kartarpur pilgrimage will be processed within seven to 10 working days, the report said.
India and Pakistan on Wednesday agreed on visa-free travel by Indian pilgrims to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib using the proposed Kartarpur Corridor but stopped short of finalising an agreement on the cross-border route.
Earlier, the two sides had agreed that Pakistan will allow 5,000 Indian pilgrims to visit the gurdwara every day using the planned corridor, and the numbers could be more on special occasions.
But the two neighbours on Wednesday could not finalise the draft agreement on the corridor, with Pakistan insisting on charging a service fee from Indian pilgrims and not allowing protocol officials to accompany them.
Pakistan has suggested a fee of USD 20 per pilgrim for visiting the gurdwara. India said the amount was not an issue, but on auspicious occasions, no fee is charged for visiting any gurdwara in the world.
The proposed corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district of Punjab, to mark the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev in November.
The service fee from the pilgrims will be another source of foreign currency generation for Pakistan, which is already reeling under severe financial crisis, a government official said.
Since 5,000 pilgrims are allowed to visit the gurdwara Darbar Saheb Kartarpur, Pakistan, which will be charging USD 20 service fee per pilgrim, will earn USD 1,00,000 every day.
With Monday's rate of Indian Rs 70.95 for one USD, Pakistan will earn Indian Rs 70.95 lakh every day.
As the rate of Pakistani currency is Rs 156.46 for one USD, the per day earning will be Rs 1.56 crore (Pakistani rupees).
Since the pilgrimage will be allowed all 365 days in a year, Pakistan will earn USD 3,65,00,000.
The amount will be Indian Rs 258 crore and Pakistani Rs 571 crore.
Though India decided to sign a pact with Pakistan on October 23 for ensuring smooth travel of pilgrims through the Kartarpur corridor, it has asked Islamabad to review the decision to charge the fee in future.
Last month, India and Pakistan agreed on visa-free travel of Indian pilgrims to Gurudwara Darbar Sahib using the Kartarpur corridor.
Pilgrims will only have to carry their passports to visit the revered gurdwara in Pakistan.
Persons of Indian origin holding OCI (Overseas Citizenship of India) card too can visit the Gurdwara using the Kartarpur corridor.
It was also decided that 5,000 pilgrims can visit the shrine everyday and that additional pilgrims will be allowed on special occasions, subject to capacity expansion of facilities by Pakistan side.
India and Pakistan have also decided that the corridor will be operational throughout the year and seven days a week and that pilgrims will have a choice to visit it as individuals or in groups.
Also, it has exempted the Indian pilgrims from paying a $20 entry fee on the day of the inauguration of the corridor and Guru Nanak Dev's birthday.
"For Sikhs coming for pilgrimage to Kartarpur from India, I have waived off 2 requirements: i) they won't need a passport -- just a valid ID; ii) they no longer have to register 10 days in advance," Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan tweeted.
"Also, no fee will be charged on the day of inauguration & on Guruji's 550th birthday," he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Kartarpur Corridor on November 9 and dispatch the first lot of pilgrims to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan's Punjab province on the occasion of the birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev.
The Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara, originally known as Gurdwara Darbar Sahib, is a highly revered Sikh shrine where Guru Nanak Dev spent 18 years of his life and is his final resting place.
A day earlier, Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh reviewed the progress of the arrangements at Dera Baba Nanak and Sultanpur Lodhi for the inauguration of the Kartarpur Corridor and the 550th Prakash Purb celebrations. He said all preparations were on track.
The pilgrimage, organised by the Shriomani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), the body that manages Sikh shrines in India, will conclude on November 14.
The devotees will visit Sikh shrines, including Nankana Sahib -- the birth place of Guru Nanak Dev in Punjab province -- Panja Sahib in Hasanabdal city and Kartarpur Sahib.
The Kartarpur Gurdwara, located some 4 km from the border with India, is believed to have been built on the site where Guru Nanak died in the 16th century. It is going to be linked with the 4.2 km-long Kartarpur Sahib Corridor.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Kartarpur Corridor on November 9 and dispatch the first lot of pilgrims to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara in Pakistan's Punjab province on the occasion of the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev that falls on November 12.
The 60-second video is shared by a Twitter user with the caption, "Separated in 1947, Reunited in 2020 - at #KartarpurSahib #Pakistan #Punjab."
In the viral video, two elderly women reunited in 2020, who were earlier separated during the Partition in 1947, which separated millions of friends and families overnight. The two elderly women after their reunion can be seen hugging each other with tears in their eyes.
https://twitter.com/Thethia1/status/1228133715349561346
As the post went viral, social media has been abuzz with reactions. A user wrote, "They remind me of my naani. She was 10 when she migrated but never forgot her soul sisters, her tribe, who she left behind and those who came along her from the other side. Time stands frozen for them. Incredible stories."
Another wrote, "Partition reunion stories are the most beautiful. We always tend to forget the pain they had to go through."
A post read, "Very emotional... sometimes I feel there shouldn't have been partition."
"I wanna go to this place...just to witness such beautiful reunion moments...humanity...love...passion...tears of joy & sadness...these moments r just priceless...," a user remarked.
(IANS)