Kartarpur Corridor to be completed by Sept: Minister

Chandigarh:  Punjab Public Works Minister Vijay Inder Singla on Saturday said the construction work of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor will be completed by September 30.

After detailed inspection of the site towards India, the Minister said 25 per cent of the construction work of the passage that will link India’s Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district and Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Pakistan’s Punjab province has been done.

An official statement quoting the Minister said the construction of the 4.2-km-long corridor will be over before the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev (1469-1539) will be observed in India and Pakistan.

A large portion of the corridor falls in Pakistan’s territory.

Keeping in view the heavy movement of pilgrims, all approach roads to Dera Baba Nanak from Batala, Fatehgarh Churian and Ramdas are also being upgraded, the Minister said.

He said 62 acres have been acquired for the project at a rate of Rs 42 lakh per acre with the total cost amounting to Rs 26.04 crore. Besides, civil works of Rs 90 crore are also under progress.

Fifty acres of additional land is also being acquired for the construction of an Integrated Check Post by the Land Port Authority of India, the Minister added.

Officials from India and Pakistan met at the Zero Line along the international border in Punjab’s Dera Baba Nanak sector on May 27 and discussed the technical aspects to construct the Kartarpur Corridor.

Media reports said technical experts from both the countries at the meeting could not reach a consensus on building a bridge over the Ravi’s floodplain.

India expressed keenness to construct a km-long bridge on the Ravi river, while Pakistan stressed the need to construct a road.

This was the third meeting with the last one held on April 16 focusing largely on the security aspect of the corridor.

Officials say that security is important as the corridor is expected to cater to the daily movement of hundreds of pilgrims from India who will be visiting the Sikh shrine inside Pakistan under a visa-free arrangement.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has been demanding visa-free “khula darshan” at the gurdwara for Indians of all faiths, from India and overseas, all days of the week.

The Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Narowal district of Pakistan’s Punjab province is significant for the Sikh community as it is here that Guru Nanak Dev spent 18 years of his life and is his final resting place.

The governments of India and Pakistan are trying to facilitate the travel of pilgrims to offer prayers at the gurdwara, a demand made by the Sikhs for over 70 years.

Published on: Jun 1, 2019 at 17:15 IST

IANS