I RECENTLY had an opportunity to visit Kartarpur Corridor and the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib of the Sikh community. It was heartening that the construction of the structure and the facilitation being provided to the Sikh pilgrims are of international standards. I would urge the people of Pakistan and India to visit the place at least once. It is a great spot to visit for anyone.

The Gurdwara is a grand structure in the border area of Kartarpur. The security arrangements are of international standards and foolproof. However, if one travels to the spot by road, it is an arduous and painful journey owing to the pathetic road conditions.

One fails to understand why do governments in Pakistan spend millions on infrastructure projects while ignoring the road network. Be it a cricket stadium or underpass, the story remains the same. On this count, the road leading to the Gurdwara is no exception. The foreigners will surely be impressed by the Gurdwara and the facilities being provided there by the government, but will carry mixed memories because of the bad condition of the road leading to the destination.

Moreover, inside the premises, one can also face rude, almost aggressive behaviour of the staff wearing yellow cloth pieces on their heads. They force you to wear a green plastic cap. One such staff member misbehaved with my friend when he was taking a picture without wearing the cap. What was that about? The logic given by the staff was that one cannot take a picture without the cap “as it is forbidden and sinful”. This surely needs to be checked.

Shakir Ullah Afridi
Islamabad

Published in Dawn, April 17th, 2022