Attari, September 15: As many as 48 Sikh pilgrims from Pakistan have arrived at the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar to embark on their 25-day pilgrimage to various parts of India.
48 Pakistani pilgrims on 25-day visit to various Sikh shrines in India
Attari, September 15: As many as 48 Sikh pilgrims from Pakistan have arrived at the Attari-Wagah border in Amritsar to embark on their 25-day pilgrimage to various parts of India.
Jatha leader Satinderpal Singh said they would first visit the Golden Temple in Amritsar and would then proceed towards Delhi and Uttarakhand. "Mainly, we are here to visit Hemkund Sahib. We have 25-day visa," he added.
Visas to the Sikh pilgrims have been issued under the Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines of 1974, which provides visas to pilgrims for the visit of Sikh pilgrims from both countries.
The 1974 Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines between India and Pakistan is a set of principles that was implemented while keeping in view the sentiments and devotion of the various communities in the two countries.
The protocol states that such visits from one country to the other shall be allowed without discrimination as to religion or sect; up to 20 parties may be allowed to visit from one country to the other every year, while the number could be revised from time to time.
"Every effort should continue to be made to ensure that places of religious worship mentioned in the agreed list are properly maintained and their sanctity preserved," the Ministry of External Affairs had said in a statement.
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Earlier, Indian Sikh pilgrims had also visited Pakistan to pay obeisance at Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib.
-Source: ANI/Edited by PTC Desk
