India-Pakistan Kartarpur meet underway

Attari Exactly a month after the Pulwama terror attack killed 40 CRPF troopers Indian and Pakistani officials met for the first time at Attari border near Amritsar on Thursday to finalise modalities of the corridor to the Kartarpur Sahib gurdwaraCommitment to fulfill a dream is how Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Raveesh Kumar referred to the crucial dialogue on Twitter once the meet kicked off Talks begin between India and Pakistan to discuss and finalise the modalities for the Kartarpur Corridor that will facilitate Indian pilgrims to visit the holy shrine of Gurudwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur he addedThe meeting started after the arrival of the Pakistani delegation via the AttariWagah joint check post land border It is being held at the Integrated Check Post ICP at Attari on the Indian side Officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs MHA Ministry of External Affairs MEA National High Authority of India and other related departments represent the Indian side at the talksPunjab Indian delegation arrives at the integrated check post at AttariWagah Border They will be meeting delegation from Pakistan for discussions over KartarpurCorridor today pictwittercomoegF4f9Wrwmdash ANI ANI March 14 2019While Pakistan has sent an 18member team headed by its Foreign Offices DirectorGeneral of South Asia Muhammad Faisal who is also the Foreign Office spokespersonIndia has made it clear that the meeting was in no way a resumption of a bilateral dialogue It is not any resumption of bilateral talks let me make it very clear that it is not in any way a resumption of a bilateral dialogue the MEA spokesperson said earlierThe Ministry has said that the issue relates to emotions and sentiments of the Indian citizens of the Sikh faith and its decision regarding the meeting reflects a strong commitment to operationalise the corridor on the occasion of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak DevSources said that security aspect was of paramount importance and there will be no dilution in that India is wary of the Pakistan establishments direct and indirect support to proKhalistan elements who would like to take advantage by reaching out to pilgrims from IndiaThey have also said that Pakistan will also be conveyed that places of pilgrimage should not be used for separatist propaganda by antiIndia elements India is keen for visafree access to the pilgrims to the historic Sikh shrine across the borderOfficials from both sides were also expected to discuss the alignment of the project as there is some mismatch in the coordinatesContinuing with our spirit of constructive engagement and flexibility and in line with our sincere efforts to deescalate the situation for regional peace and stability Faisal told Pakistani media before leaving for India for the talksHe said that this was the first in a series of meetings We hope this initiative of the Prime Minister Imran Khan will not only facilitate Sikhs especially from India but will be a step forward in the current direction from conflict to cooperation animosity to peace and enmity to friendship he addedAn Indian delegation will visit Islamabad for a followup meeting on March 28The meeting is taking place a month after a militant of the Pakistanbased JaisheMohammad terror outfit on February 14 blew up a truck of a Central Reserve Police Force convoy killing 40 troopers and triggering IndiaPakistan tensionsThe Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara in Narowal district of Pakistans Punjab province located 45 km from the border near the Dera Baba Nanak town in Punjabs Gurdaspur district is significant for the Sikh community as it is here that Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev spent 18 years of his life and is his final resting placeThe governments of India and Pakistan are trying to facilitate the travel of pilgrims to offer prayers at the gurdwara a demand made by the Sikhs for the past over 70 yearsPunjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh wants passport and visafree khule darshan for pilgrimsThe union government has already announced the setting up of a Rs 190crore stateoftheart Passenger Terminal Building Complex at Dera Baba Nanak with its design inspired by the symbol Khand which symbolises values of oneness and humanityIt will cater to about 5000 pilgrims per day with provision to cater to additional 10000 pilgrims during festivalsCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates