Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan on Wednesday laid the foundation stone at the ground breaking ceremony of a corridor along the country’s border with India in a move to facilitate Indian Sikh pilgrims across the border.
The Kartarpur Corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur in Pakistan’s Punjab province, the final resting place of Sikh faith’s founder Guru Nanak, and the international border with India.
Hundreds of Sikh pilgrims also attended the function and some participants welcomed the opening of the corridor which will enable them to visit the religious site without visa.
Khan was joined by Pakistan army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, Islamabad-based diplomats and senior officials.
Indian Minister of Food Processing Industries Harsimrat Kaur Badal and Junior Minister for Urban Development Hardeep Singh Puri attended the opening ceremony.
Experts believe the opening of the corridor could decrease tensions between the two neighbors and have positive impact on bilateral relations.
India had postponed dialogue with Pakistan in April 2016 after an attack on an Indian airbase in January which New Delhi blamed on Pakistan-based militants.
Pakistani Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry earlier termed the opening of the corridor as a “victory of peace” and said the decision will encourage the voices of reason on both sides of the border.