Sikhs cheer as Kartarpur corridor reopens today

New Delhi: The Kartarpur  Sahib corridor to the most  revered shrines of Sikhs  located in Pakistan will  be reopened from Wednesday, Union Home Minister  Amit Shah  announced on  Tuesday.

The corridor  links Gurdwara Darbar  Sahib in Pakistan, the final  resting place  o f Sikhism  founder Guru  Nanak Dev,  to Dera Baba  Nanak shrine  in Punjab’s  Gurdaspur district.

The announcement to restart  the pilgrimage  that was suspended since March 2020  following the COVID-19 outbreak came three days before the birth anniversary of  Guru Nanak Dev on Friday. 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.

Shah 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 CM  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. Besides Channi,  Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, former CM  Amarinder Singh hailed the  Centre’s move. PTI