Kartarpur Corridor will open on Nov 9: Pak PM

Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Sunday said that much-awaited Kartarpur Corridor will be thrown open for public on November 9.

"Pakistan is all set to open its doors for Sikhs from all across the globe, as the construction work on Kartarpur project enters final stages and will be open to the public on November 9, 2019," said Khan in his Facebook post.

He said that the world largest gurdwara will be visited by Sikhs from across the world including India.

The corridor will connect Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district of Punjab.

"World's largest Gurdwara will be visited by Sikhs from across India and other parts of the world. This will become a major religious hub for the Sikh community and will boost the local economy, result in earning foreign exchange for the country creating jobs in different sectors including travel and hospitality. Religious Tourism is on the rise in Pakistan, earlier Buddhist monks visited various sites for religious rituals followed by the opening of #Kartarpur corridor," Pakistan Prime Minister said.

The corridor will facilitate visa-free movement of Indian pilgrims, who will have to just obtain a permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib, which was established in 1522 by Sikh faith founder Guru Nanak Dev.

The corridor will also be the first visa-free corridor between the two neighbours, Dunya News reported.

India and Pakistan have held a series of high-level talks for the operationalisation of the corridor before the ahead of to mark the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev.

India has said that an agreement on all other issues except the matter of service fee has been reached between New Delhi and Islamabad.

Pakistan has been insisting on levying a fee of USD 20 on all pilgrims. However, the Indian side has urged the Islamic nation to not charge the proposed fee.

From the Indian side, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the corridor. Meanwhile, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said that Prime Minister Imran Khan will inaugurate the project on November 9, three days before the 550th birth anniversary Baba Guru Nanak.