India, Pakistan sign five-year agreement to operationalise Kartarpur Corridor

NEW DELHI | DERA BABA NANAK: India and Pakistan on Thursday signed a five-year agreement to operationalise the Kartarpur corridor to let 5,000 Indian Sikh pilgrims visit the holy Darbar Sahib across the border every day. It can be suspended by either side on one month’s notice. Both sides have agreed over a negative list of items such as Wi-Fi and broadband devices, and flags and banners challenging the territorial integrity of the two nations. There will be no mobile or internet connectivity beyond the BSF checkpoint, due to security reasons, official said.

“One of the main issues was the insistence of Pakistan to levy $20 as service charge per pilgrim per visit. India has consistently urged Pakistan to not levy any fee on the pilgrims and it was stressed time and again, including in the previous three joint secretary-level meetings and at the diplomatic level, that this is not in consonance with the religious and spiritual sentiments of Indian pilgrims,” the home ministry said in a statement after signing the agreement. “India continues to take up this issue with the Pakistan government to reconsider its insistence on levying the fee. India remains ready to amend the agreement accordingly,” it added.

The pact was signed by joint secretary to the home ministry SCL Das and Pakistan foreign office spokesperson Mohammad Faisal. Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan has fulfilled his promise and completed the corridor in a year. “It was never simple to reach an agreement on the Kartarpur corridor,” Faisal said.