kartarpur-corridor-between-india-and-pakistan

With Pakistan refusing to budge on charging Sikh pilgrims $20 to visit the Kartarpur corridor, India gave in and agreed to sign the Kartarpur Corridor agreement on October 23.

  • Kartarpur timeline
  • Feb 1999: PM Vajpayee raises the Kartarpur issue with PM Sharif
  • 2000: Pakistan agrees to allow Sikh from India visa-free access by constructing a bridge from the Indian side of the border to the shrine. Lt Gen Javed Nasir, president of the Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Committee, proposes a corridor
  • Sep 2004: PM Manmohan Singh declares in Amritsar that Kartarpur corridor proposal will be taken up with Pakistan
  • 2004-08: Kartarpur corridor was part of talks held between the two nations till 26/11 derailed the dialogue process
  • 2011-12: Was discussed in talks again
  • Aug 2018: Proposal revived after discussions between Pakistan Army Chief General Bajwa and Navjot Singh Sidhu
  • Nov 2018: Indian Cabinet approves Kartarpur corridor from Dera Baba Nanak to the Pakistan border
  • Nov 26, 2018: Vice President  lays the foundation for the corridor up to the International Border at an event at Mann village of Punjab’s Gurdaspur district

What is the current initiative to help pilgrimage under the Kartarpur corridor agreement?

  • The government has taken the initiative to put in place the state of the art infrastructure and open the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor.
  • The proposed corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur currently in Pakistan with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in the Gurdaspur district of Punjab.
  • This initiative will coincide with the auspicious occasion of the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.
  • The pilgrims from India and those holding Overseas Citizen of India Card can undertake a visit to the holy Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib.

What is the issue with the agreement on kartarpur corridor between India and Pakistan?

  • Pakistan is an insistence upon charging USD 20 as a service fee from Indian devotees for a visit to  Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara.
  • The poor devotees will not be able to afford the service charge of $ 20 levied by Pakistan.

However, India will sign the Kartarpur agreement to facilitate the smooth movement of the devotees to the Sikh shrine. Pakistan needs to waive off the service charge which will be a silver lining amid Indo-Pak troubled ties. Also read: Xi Mooted Trilateral Ties With India, Pakistan Recent Trends in Migration Among Indians