Kartarpur Gurudwara: Pakistan agrees to allow year-long visa-free access

  1. Indian and Pakistani officials had met at Wagah border to hold discussions on the Kartarpur corridor.
  2. Pakistan has agreed to allow visa-free travel for Indian passport holders and Overseas Citizens of India(OCI) through the Kartarpur corridor.
  3. Pakistan has also agreed to let 5,000 pilgrims visit the Kartarpur Sahib Gurdwara every day for all seven days a week.The pilgrims will be allowed to travel as individuals or in groups and also on foot.
  4. Pakistan has also assured that no anti-India activity would be allowed using the corridor.India had conveyed its concerns over the presence of pro-Khalistani elements in a 10-member committee Pakistan had set up for the Kartarpur project.
  5. Pakistan has also agreed in principle to build a bridge on its side to make the corridor immune to flooding and ensure an all-weather corridor to the gurdwara through the year.This had emerged as a key difference during the technical-level talks earlier.
  6. The Kartarpur Corridor is a 4km long proposed corridor comprising border gates,road and a bridge to link Dera Baba Nanak gurdwara in Gurdaspur district in India to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Pakistan.It is aimed at allowing the easy movement of Sikh pilgrims to the Kartarpur gurdwara.
  7. The gurdwara in Kartarpur stands on the bank of River Ravi,about 120 km northeast of Lahore.It is revered as Guru Nanak’s final resting place.
  8. India wants the corridor to be ready in time for pilgrims to visit Kartarpur to celebrate Guru Nanak’s 550th birth anniversary in November,2019.