LAHORE: The celebrations of 553rd birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak Dev Jee begun at Gurdwara Janam Asthan in Nankana Sahib on Tuesday. The ceremony will conclude after Nagar Kirtan procession and final ritual at night.
Thousands of Sikhs from India and other countries have arrived in Pakistan to participate in birthday celebrations at Janumasthan Nankana Sahib. Despite tensions with India, the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) has made every effort to assist Sikh yatrees visiting Pakistan.
Pakistan has made it possible for the Sikh community to celebrate the birthday of their Guru Baba Nanak Dev Jee in Kartarpur Corridor, despite India’s defiant stance.
This is just another example of Islamabad’s efforts to promote peace in the area. Sikhs were able to visit their holy place during this significant ceremony because of Islamabad’s efforts. The Kartarpur corridor is a visa-free crossing allowing Indian Sikhs to visit the temple just 4 kilometers inside Pakistan where Baba Guru Nanak died in 1539.
The corridor was initially inaugurated in 2019 to celebrate Baba Nanak’s 550th birthday, however, it was later shut down due to the coronavirus epidemic. The corridor links Punjab in Pakistan and Punjab in India, which was split between the two nations after they won independence from Britain in 1947.
Punjab is the home of Sikhism. Although many of their sacred sites are still present in Religion Pakistan, Sikhs make up a very small percentage there. Since gaining independence, Pakistan and India have fought three full-scale wars over Kashmir, which is split between the two nations but is claimed by each in its entirety.
The corridor was described by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as the “Corridor of Hope” during his visit to Kartarpur Sahib in February 2020. The Kartarpur corridor was reopened on 29 June 2020 under Covid-19-related protocols after its temporary closure due to the pandemic on 16 March 2020.(Pakistan Today)
