Kartarpur Corridor Travel Guidelines: Hours after India allowed the reopening of Kartarpur Sahib corridor from Wednesday, the Evacuee Trust Property Board that looks after the Gurdwara, said Covid protocols applicable to the rest of the country will be in effect for the Kartarpur Corridor pilgrimage as well.
Speaking to News18, Aamer Ahmed, Chairman of the Evacuee Trust Property Board, said that pilgrims will have to undergo temperature checks and anyone with Covid-19 symptoms will be moved to isolation. He also added that the RT-PCR certificate should not be older than 72 hours. As per of the guidelines, the face mask and social distancing will be followed throughout the pilgrimage and sanitisation stations will be in place.
As per the SOPs, the negative RT-PCR test report and vaccine proof will be mandatory for pilgrims headed to the Kartarpur Sahib corridor. Giving further details, Ahmed said no Covid-19 test would be conducted on arrival at the Gurdwara.
It must be noted that the Kartarpur Sahib corridor was suspended since March 2020 following the Covid outbreak came three days before the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.
The corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, to Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district.
Making the announcement, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said the decision reflects the Modi government’s immense reverence for Guru Nanak Dev and the Sikh community.
“In a major decision, that will benefit large numbers of Sikh pilgrims, PM @Narendramodi govt has decided to reopen the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor from tomorrow, Nov 17. This decision reflects the immense reverence of Modi govt towards Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji and our Sikh community,” Shah tweeted.
The home minister said the nation is all set to celebrate the Prakash Utsav of Shri Guru Nanak Dev ji on November 19 and he was confident that this move will further “boost the joy and happiness across the country”.
Punjab Chief Minister Charanjit Singh Channi welcomed the Centre’s decision and said the state cabinet will be part of the “Jatha” that will visit the shrine in Pakistan on November 18.
India signed the Kartarpur corridor agreement with Pakistan on October 24, 2019. Under the pact, Indian pilgrims of all faiths are allowed to undertake round the year visa-free travel through the 4.5-km-long passage.
In November 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had inaugurated the dedicated corridor. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, his wife Gursharan Kaur, the then Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh and Union minister Hardeep Puri were part of the first group that visited the gurudwara in Pakistan in November 2019 through the corridor.