New Delhi: The Kartarpur Corridor is a border corridor or a bridge between Pakistan and India, connecting Sikh pilgrims in India to the shrine of their first Guru, Guru Nanak Dev in Punjab, Pakistan.
The four-km corridor was first proposed in February 1999 by Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for allowing religious devotees to visit the Gurudwara Kartarpur Saheb. Vajpayee had taken a bus to Lahore as part of a peace initiative with Pakistan.
Kartarpur Saheb is said to have been established in 1522 by Guru Nanak Dev himself. He passed away in 1539.
18 years after Pakistan agreed to allow Sikh pilgrims from India to visit the shrine visa-free, the foundation stone of the bridge was laid on both sides.
On November 26, 2018, the foundation stone of the Kartarpur Corridor was laid in Indian Punjab by Vice President of India Venkaiah Naidu. While Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan laid the foundation stone on its side two days later.
This development took place after Punjab Minister visited Pakistan to attend Pakistani PM Imran Khan's swearing-in ceremony in August 2018.
On his return, he said that the Pakistani government intended to open the Dera Baba Nanak corridor on Guru Nanak's 550th birth anniversary falling on November 12, 2019.
In the same year(2018) in November, the Indian Cabinet approved the Kartarpur Corridor to Pakistan border and its foundation was laid on both sides.
On October 24, 2019, India and Pakistan signed an agreement on the Corridor and online registration for the pilgrimage began soon after.
The matter witnessed a turn of events when Pakistani PM differed from the previous agreement.
A week after the agreement, on November 1, Khan announced a fee-waiver for Indian pilgrims on November 9 and 12, adding that they would not require a passport.
While on the other hand, the Pakistani Army contradicted the PM and said that the Corridor will be visa-based.
