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India comes round on Kartarpur Corridor talks with Pakistan
By Asif Mehmood
Published: June 30, 2019
TWEET EMAIL
Sikhs around the world worried over New Delhi’s delaying tactics. PHOTO: EXPRESS
LAHORE: India has proposed tentative dates for talks with Pakistani officials to finalise matters pertaining to the Kartarpur Corridor ahead of Baba Guru Nanak’s anniversary in November.
New Delhi has suggested July 11-14 for talks on the Pakistani side of Wagah border, wherein officials shall elaborate on a draft agreement to facilitate the movement of Sikh pilgrims and resolve outstanding technical issues related to the corridor’s alignment and infrastructure.
The Kartarpur crossing will link Dera Baba Nanak in Indian Punjab with Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan.
The development comes after Indian authorities postponed the second meeting over the inclusion of pro-Khalistan activists in a Pakistani committee to facilitate Sikh pilgrims.
Earlier, the two countries held technical level talks at the site on April 16. A senior official said there was no delay on Pakistan’s part.
Kartarpur talks: India offers to build 100-metre-long bridge
However, the official had said Pakistan was confident that India would resume talks after the elections.
The corridor, once operational, will provide visa-free access to Sikhs from India to their holiest Shrine located inside Pakistan. This will also be the first visa-free corridor between the two nuclear-armed neighbours since their independence in 1947.
The proposal has been in the works for over two decades. However, it only began to take shape when in August, the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan announced that Pakistan was planning to open the corridor.
In November, PM Imran performed the groundbreaking ceremony to build a four km long corridor at Kartarpur. The ceremony was attended by the premier’s friend and former Indian cricketer Navjaot Singh Sidhu.
Since then, the construction work has been underway with some pace as authorities are working overnight to meet the deadline.
Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, considered the holiest place in Sikh religion because it is the last resting place of Baba Guru Nanak, is located in Narowal, only 4 kilometres away from the Indian border.
The Shrine is visible from the Indian side of the border and every day a larger number of Sikh devotees gather to perform Darshan or sacred viewings of the site.
The two sides continued talks on the corridor despite their February 27 military standoff. India, which otherwise refused to engage with Pakistan, is finding it hard to run away from the Kartarpur initiative given the religious sentiments of Indian Sikhs attached to the corridor.
Some are concerned that given the hostility between the two countries, the opening of the corridor may face a delay.
But Pakistan is hopeful that the corridor will become functional on the 550th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak in November this year.
By Asif Mehmood
Published: June 30, 2019
TWEET EMAIL
Sikhs around the world worried over New Delhi’s delaying tactics. PHOTO: EXPRESS
LAHORE: India has proposed tentative dates for talks with Pakistani officials to finalise matters pertaining to the Kartarpur Corridor ahead of Baba Guru Nanak’s anniversary in November.
New Delhi has suggested July 11-14 for talks on the Pakistani side of Wagah border, wherein officials shall elaborate on a draft agreement to facilitate the movement of Sikh pilgrims and resolve outstanding technical issues related to the corridor’s alignment and infrastructure.
The Kartarpur crossing will link Dera Baba Nanak in Indian Punjab with Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan.
The development comes after Indian authorities postponed the second meeting over the inclusion of pro-Khalistan activists in a Pakistani committee to facilitate Sikh pilgrims.
Earlier, the two countries held technical level talks at the site on April 16. A senior official said there was no delay on Pakistan’s part.
Kartarpur talks: India offers to build 100-metre-long bridge
However, the official had said Pakistan was confident that India would resume talks after the elections.
The corridor, once operational, will provide visa-free access to Sikhs from India to their holiest Shrine located inside Pakistan. This will also be the first visa-free corridor between the two nuclear-armed neighbours since their independence in 1947.
The proposal has been in the works for over two decades. However, it only began to take shape when in August, the government of Prime Minister Imran Khan announced that Pakistan was planning to open the corridor.
In November, PM Imran performed the groundbreaking ceremony to build a four km long corridor at Kartarpur. The ceremony was attended by the premier’s friend and former Indian cricketer Navjaot Singh Sidhu.
Since then, the construction work has been underway with some pace as authorities are working overnight to meet the deadline.
Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib, considered the holiest place in Sikh religion because it is the last resting place of Baba Guru Nanak, is located in Narowal, only 4 kilometres away from the Indian border.
The Shrine is visible from the Indian side of the border and every day a larger number of Sikh devotees gather to perform Darshan or sacred viewings of the site.
The two sides continued talks on the corridor despite their February 27 military standoff. India, which otherwise refused to engage with Pakistan, is finding it hard to run away from the Kartarpur initiative given the religious sentiments of Indian Sikhs attached to the corridor.
Some are concerned that given the hostility between the two countries, the opening of the corridor may face a delay.
But Pakistan is hopeful that the corridor will become functional on the 550th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak in November this year.
