India expects record 6,500 Sikh pilgrims for Baisakhi

On Thursday, the conventional Baisakhi celebration, a report wide variety of over 6,500 Indian Sikh pilgrims could go to Pakistan; the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) pronounced on Tuesday. Celebrated mostly in Punjab and Evacuee Trust Property Board the spring harvest festival, marks the start of the Sikh New Year and stands for spiritual renewal. ETPB officials said during their ten-day journey from April 10–19 the pilgrims will visit several sacred locations. Following the 1974 Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines, Sikh followers often travel to Pakistan to perform religious rites. Pakistan presents 3,000 visas yearly according to beneathneath the protocol. Still, a report quantity of visas had been issued—first in history. First batch could come at Gurdwara Punja Sahib on Thursday, stated ETPB Additional Secretary Shrines Saif Ullah Khokhar. Following 3 days of providing holy rites, the pilgrims might head Saturday for the Nankana Sahib. Arriving at Gurdwara Punja Sahib on April 15 may be the second one contingent of pilgrims. Following their imparting of spiritual rites, the visitors could head for Lahore on April 17. Mr Khokar said that deliberate arrivals in Pakistan additionally blanketed many pilgrims from different countries such the United Kingdom, France, United States, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). In line with the every year celebration, he stated the board and the Pakistan Gurdwara Committee will redesign and mild holy webweb sites in numerous cities. Local Granthi (religious leader) Sardar Ravinder Singh claimed that Baisakhi also marks the day when Gobind Singh, the tenth and last guru of Sikhism, founded the discipline of Khalsa, therefore allowing the devoted to aspire to the closing situation of purity. “Today marks 1,699 — the year Sikhism first emerged as a shared faith. Baisakhi’s standard message, he continued, is of peace and love. The Attock district government said at the same time that security plans for the next celebration at Gurdwara Punja Sahib in Hassanabdal are finalised. Every year, pilgrims complete rites including Akhand, Paath Sahib, Bhog, Ardas, and Hukamnama here. Attock Deputy Commissioner Rao Atif Raza said, “We, with the collaboration of ETPB and Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (PSGRC), have finalised plans for security, meals and lodging at the gurdwara for the pilgrims.” Speaking with reporters, To provide security, he said some 1,000 police officers and personnel—including six SDPOs, seventeen inspectors, 103 higher superintenders, 94 head constables, 667 constables and 36 lady constables—will be assigned. Apart from this, he stated, 50 protection cameras, 12 walkthrough gates, and forty steel detectors might be positioned as well. According to Mr Rao, stores across the gurdwara might be blocked and 26 sections of unique commandos might be beneathneath extremely good alert