Online Registration For Pilgrims Commences. PM Modi will inaugurate the corridor on November 9. Earlier, India agreed to sign the agreement on Wednesday. The corridor will link Dera Baba Nanak Sahib in Punjab's Gurdaspur district to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Pakistan's Punjab

New Delhi: India and Pakistan, on Thursday, signed the agreement to operationalise the Kartarpur corridor.

Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, SCL Das met Pakistan officials at zero point near the site of the Kartarpur corridor and signed the MoU on India's behalf.

Addressing a press conference after the agreement was signed, Joint Secretary in the Ministry of Home Affairs, SCL Das said that the online portal – http://prakashpurb550.mha.gov.in has gone live today for the registration of pilgrims.

He further said that the Pakistan side has agreed to make sufficient provision for ‘langar’ and distribution of ‘Prasad’ in the Gurdwara premises.

“On our side, all the required infrastructure, including the highway and the Passenger Terminal Building are nearing completion for timely inauguration of the corridor,” he said at the media briefing.

“Corridor will be open from dawn to dusk. Pilgrims travelling in the morning will have to return on the same day. Corridor will be operational throughout the year, except on notified days," he added.

With the signing of this agreement, a formal framework has been laid down for operationalisation of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor, said Das.

“Indian pilgrims of all faith and persons of Indian origin they can use the Kartarpur Corridor. The travel will be visa-free. Pilgrims need to carry only a valid passport,” he added.

Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs had agreed to sign the agreement on Wednesday despite the ongoing contentions between the two countries over Pakistan's insistence on charging USD 20 service fee from each Indian pilgrim.

“In view of the long pending demand of the pilgrims to have visa-free access to Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib and in the interest of operationalisation of the corridor in time before the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak falling on November 12, the government on Monday conveyed that India would be ready to sign the agreement on the corridor on October 23,” the MEA had said in a statement on Monday.

The signing of the agreement was, however, later delayed due to logistical issues, PTI quoted official sources as saying.

The corridor, which is scheduled to be inaugurated next month to mark the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, will link Dera Baba Nanak Sahib in Punjab's Gurdaspur district to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur in Pakistan's Punjab and facilitate visa-free movement of Indian pilgrims.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the highly-anticipated corridor on November 9 following which the first batch of pilgrims will be dispatched to visit Kartarpur Sahib Gurudwara in Pakistan's Punjab province.

The MEA had earlier said that the government has decided to put in place a state-of-the-art infrastructure and open the Kartarpur Corridor on the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev so that the pilgrims from India and those holding Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card can visit the holy shrine, the final resting of the Sikh guru.

Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu had laid the foundation stone for the Kartarpur corridor in Punjab's Gurdaspur district last November.