Over 500 Sikh pilgrims to enter India from Pakistan

Amritsar, Aug 1 (IANS) In a first-of-its-kind since India's partition, a team of over 500 Sikh pilgrims will enter India from Pakistan via road on Thursday after paying obeisance at the historic Nankana Sahib as part of the 550th birth anniversary celebrations of Guru Nanak Dev, the founder of Sikhism, event organisers said.Two days ago, the pilgrims entered Punjab province of Pakistan."I invite Sangat to join at Attari Border in maximum number to welcome the Nagar Kirtan from Sri Nankana Sahib today at 1.30 p.m.," tweeted Akali Dal MLA Manjinder S. Sirsa.Sirsa, who is the Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Committee President, is leading the pilgrims from India."Pakistan feels honoured that celebrations of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak are being started from Nankana Sahib," the Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi said in a statement.The Pakistan government is taking several initiatives to make the celebrations memorable and historic, it added.The cross-border Kartarpur corridor will be inaugurated in November, during which thousands of pilgrims from India are expected to cross into Pakistan to visit the Kartarpur gurdwara where Guru Nanak spent his final days. A large portion of the corridor falls in Pakistan's territory.The construction of the 4.2-km-long corridor will be over by end of September, well before the 550th birth anniversary celebrations in India and Pakistan.
--IANS vg/mag/