Kartarpur corridor: Punjab CM likens Pak's demand for service charge
India | September 19, 2019 18:36 ISTHe demanded the immediate withdrawal of the proposal by Pakistan.
He demanded the immediate withdrawal of the proposal by Pakistan.
Kartarpur Sahib Corridor: In what can be great news for lakh of Sikh pilgrims wanting to visit the holy Kartarpur Saheb Gurudwara in Pakistan, the Indian government today said that the long-awaited Kartarpur Sahib Corridor will be operational on November 11, 2019.
After the Imran Khan government proposed that they will put service charge of $20 for Kartarpur Pilgrim, the leaders from United Akali Dal and Khalistan Commando Force argued that this step is unacceptable on Saturday.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said that India had gone for the third round of high level talks last week with an "open mind" to resolve all issues.
Pakistan's demand of charging 20 USD on the entry of pilgrims as service charge has been rejected by the Indian government. Speaking on Pakistan's demand, Indian Foreign Ministry spokesman Raveesh Kumar on Thursday said that Pakistan's proposal to charge an entry fee of $ 20 per Indian Sikh pilgrim has been turned down by the government.
A decision was taken on Tuesday by the state cabinet, which also resolved to convene a special session of the assembly next month, to commemorate the 550th Prakash Purb of Guru Nanak Dev.
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.
India and Pakistan on Wednesday agreed on visa-free travel of Indian pilgrims to Gurudwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan using the Kartarpur corridor, officials said.
This is the second such meeting after New Delhi revoked Jammu and Kashmir's special status leading to fresh tensions between the two neighbours.
During the meeting, which will take place on the Indian side of the Wagah-Attari Border, the two countries are expected to finalise the draft agreement for opening of the corridor in November for the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism.
The third official-level meeting between India and Pakistan to decide modalities of the Kartarpur Corridor will take place on September 4 at Attari.
The meeting at the Zero point, where the Indian and Pakistani side of the proposed corridor converge, was attended by 10 to 15 officials from each side, an official of the National Highways Authority of India, who attended the meeting, told PTI.
The meeting comprised of a group of 15 officials from each side, officials said. The Kartarpur Zero point is the point at which the Indian side of the corridor and the Pakistani side of the corridor will be converging.
Pakistan and India are still discussing the modalities regarding the opening of the corridor at Narowal, some 125-km from Lahore, for Indian Sikhs on the occasion of 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak on November 12. The corridor will also be the first visa-free corridor between the two neighbours since their independence in 1947.
“Sikhs should understand that Pakistan's intentions are bad and they have to be set right first,” he said.
India had called for the meetings to be held to work out arrangements and finalise the alignment of the interim approach road for the Kartarpur corridor, develop a mechanism to share information about pilgrims between nodal points, develop a mechanism to deal with exigencies that arise from the use of the corridor.
Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Wednesday expressed concern over Pakistan's decision to downgrade diplomatic ties with India but hoped the move would not affect the construction of the Kartarpur corridor. Amarinder Singh described the neighbouring nation’s action “knee-jerk and uncalled for”.
The corridor that will allow Sikh pilgrims from India to visit the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Pakistan, will be thrown open in November to mark the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, who spent his final days there.
The US has welcomed the construction of the Kartarpur corridor to link two Sikh shrines across the border between India and Pakistan, saying it supports anything that increases people-to-people ties between the two countries.
India flagged its security concerns during a meeting that took place between delegations of the two countries on the Pakistani side of the Attari-Wagah border to discuss the modalities of the Kartarpur corridor.
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