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.Several pilgrims travelled through the Kartarpur Corridor on Wednesday and others made plans to offer prayers at the historic Sikh shrine in Pakistan as the route reopened after a 20-month gap. Kanwaljeet Sodhi, a resident of Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur, said, "There were no limits to our happiness when we came to know of the reopening of the Kartarpur Corridor and this joy cannot be described in words."
Gurpurab, which marks the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, will be celebrated on November 19 . An estimated 70,000 pilgrims had visited the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara so far after it was opened in November 2019. However, pilgrimage to the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara was suspended in March 2020 due to the Covid pandemic.
A few days back, Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu demanded from the Centre to keep its promise of setting up a 'darshan sthal' fitted with binoculars to allow devotees, who do not have passports, to get a clear 'darshan' of the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara. On Tuesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced that the government has decided to reopen the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor. The Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) said, the pilgrimage to the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara commenced on Wednesday and added that it facilitated travel of pilgrims through the corridor. As per official reports, Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi, along with his ministers, will be part of the first 'jatha' (group), which will visit the Kartarpur Sahib on Thursday.
Devotees longing to offer prayers at the historic shrine are ecstatic over the Centre's move to reopen the Kartarpur Corridor."This time, we will go and offer prayers at the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara," Neetu Bedi,resident of Dera Baba Nanak said.
The Kartarpur Corridor, which provides Indian devotees visa-free access to the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on November 9, 2019, to mark the 550th birth anniversary of the first Sikh guru.
With Inputs from PTI
