Pak-India talks on Kartarpur Sahib Corridor: Second round held at Wagah

The second round of talks between Pakistan and India on the modalities for operationalisation of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor was held at Wagah on Sunday. The meeting discussed the modalities and draft agreement for facilitation of pilgrims on the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor, as also the infrastructure being developed for the corridor.The meeting also reviewed the progress reached in the three rounds of technical meeting that were held in March, April and May 2019. They endorsed the crossing point /‘zero point’ coordinates that were agreed to at the technical level. The Indian delegation shared detailed flood analysis to Pakistan and also details of the bridge that India is building on its side were shared. Pakistan agreed to build a bridge on their side. This would not only address the flooding related concerns, but also ensure smooth, hassle free, all-weather pilgrimage to the Holy Gurudwara Kartarpur Sahib, throughout the year. Pending the construction of a bridge over the old Ravi creek by Pakistan on their territory, India offered to make interim arrangements for making the corridor operational in November 2019, given the historic importance of the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji.Pakistan agreed to look at the issue of encroachment of the land belonging to the Gurudwara .The meeting was told that India has made significant progress to build a state of the art infrastructure, including passenger terminal on the Indian side that can handle over 15,000 pilgrims in a day. This is targeted to be completed by 31 October 2019. The work on the four-lane highway to the crossing point at the International Boundary is progressing satisfactorily and is on schedule. It will be completed by end September 2019. It was assured that India would be ready to commence the pilgrimage through Kartarpur corridor on the auspicious occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Devji.India has proposed to Pakistan to allow 10,000 Indian pilgrims to visit Pakistan under the 1974 Protocol on the auspicious occasion of 550th Birth Anniversary of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji.It was agreed to allow visa free travel for the Indian passport holders and OCI card holders seven days a week. Throughout the year, 5,000 pilgrims will be allowed to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara per day. The pilgrims will be allowed to travel as individuals or in groups and also on foot. Pakistan highlighted the infrastructural constraints on their side and conveyed that they may be able to accommodate many of the Indian proposals in a phased manner.Both sides have agreed to maintain a channel of communication and work towards finalisation of the Agreement on Kartarpur Sahib Corridor. The technical teams would meet again to ensure a seamless connectivity for the Kartarpur corridor is operational in time so that the pilgrimage can begin in November 2019.