Patiala: NGO to bear expenses of 1,100 poor pilgrims

Patiala: Sarbat Da Bhala Charitable Trust has announced that it will facilitate the visit of nearly 1,100 to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan through Kartarpur corridor, by bearing their travel expenses. The managing trustee, Dr S P Singh Oberoi said the service will be provided to pilgrims who cannot afford the cost of travel.

Only a day before, Punjab chief minister had asked the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC) to bear the service fee $20 of ‘yellow cardholders’.

The NGO will also help poor pilgrims reach Dera Baba Nanak, from where they will be further taken towards the gurdwara through the corridor.

“We have taken the initiative. However, the fee being charged by Pakistan is the secondary reason why few pilgrims take Kartarpur corridor. The passport requirement is the major reason. In Punjab, not many people, especially in villages, have passport,” said Oberoi. According to him, the pilgrims will be taken in two batches of 550 each, in a span of six months. The first group of 550 pilgrims will be taken through the corridor from December 1 to May 31, 2020 while the remaining 550 pilgrims will be taken from June 1, 2020 to November 30 2020.