Proposal on cards to allow Sikh pilgrims in Kartarpur without passport
Currently no passport free entry being allowed to Indian pilgrims in Kartarpur Sahib Corridor as per MoU signed between Government of Pakistan & India
Pak Chronicle Report
Islamabad
Pakistani government is considering a bid to give concession of entry without passport of Indian citizens in Kartarpur Sahib Corridor.
Proposal of giving concession of entry without passport, in order to attract more visitors, is under consideration, for which detailed input may be sought from Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Interior stated in a reply to a question of lawmaker in the National Assembly on Friday.
MNA Shaista Pervaiz of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz had asked in question hour from the Ministry of Interior to state what security measures have been placed to safeguard the national security as the government has allowed passport free arrival of Indian Citizens in Kartarpur.
To this question the House was informed that that no passport free entry is currently being allowed to Indian pilgrims in Kartarpur Sahib Corridor as per the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Government of Pakistan and India.
As per existing procedure, pilgrims can visit the Corridor from dawn to dusk after producing Indian passport or Oversees Citizen of Indian Origin Card along with passport of resident country. Same are punched by the Immigration staff at Border Terminal against the data provided by Indian authorities 10 days in advance, the reply further stated.
According to it movement of Indian visitors is monitored / regulated from border till Gurdwara complex and back through combination of physical and electronic security system by Pakistan Rangers (Punjab) along with other Law Enforcement Agencies (LEAs).
The House was informed that Indian visitors are strictly kept inside the confines of Gurdwara complex by ensuring their movement through biometric systems/ turnstile gates and to avoid their exit toward Pakistan side.
Moreover, all the activities in and around the Corridor are monitored through surveillance cameras from the Control Room, the Lower House of the Parliament was told.
The Kartarpur Corridor is a visa-free border crossing and secure corridor connecting Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan to border with India.
The crossing allows Sikh devotees from India to visit Gurdwara in Kartarpur, 4.7 kilometre from India-Pakistan border without a visa, creating a link which allows pilgrims holding Indian passports to easily visit both the Kartarpur Shrine and Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak on the Pakistani side of the border.
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