550th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak: 5,000 Indian Sikh Yatrees participate in festivities in Nankana

NANKANA SAHIB: As many as 5,000 Indian Sikh Yatrees are participating in the festivities of 550th birth anniversary of Baba Guru Nanak at Gurdwara Janamasthan here.

Similarly, more than 2,000 Sikh Yatrees from all parts of the world, including USA, Australia, Canada, England, New Zealand, Malaysia, Singapur, Afghanistan and Holland, are also participating in the festivities.

They are performing their religious rituals, including Matha Taki and Ashnan. The group leaders of different countries, including Indian Sikh Yatrees Gormeet Singh, Malaysian Sikh Yatrees Baldev Singh and Australian Sikh Yatrees leader Sardar Happy Singh have expressed pleasure over marvelous arrangements being taken for them by Pakistani government.

They thanked the Pakistani government and the ETPB chairman for making great arrangements. They also thanked Prime Minister of Pakistan Imran Khan for opening the Kartarpur Corridor and laying foundation stone for Baba Guru Nanak International University. They said that both gifts for the Sikh community had made the festivities more memorable.

Meanwhile, more than 1,000 Sikh Yatrees left for Governor House Lahore to attend a party hosted by Punjab Governor Chaudhry Muhammad Sarwar for them on Monday. Meanwhile, talking to The News, DPO Ismailur Rahman said that foolproof security arrangements had been made for the security of visiting Sikh Yatrees.

He told that more than 2,500 police personnel were performing duty in three shifts. He said that additional police force had also been called from other districts, including Lahore, Kasur, Sheikhupura, Faisalabad and Chakwal.

He said that adjoining areas of the Gurdwara Janamasthan had been sealed with barbed wires while police had also been deployed on nearby rooftops. He said that special pickets had been established on inner and outer routes of Nankana while Dolphin Police were also patrolling on roads and streets of the city.

He said that a police band would also lead the procession of Nagar Keertan on Tuesday for the first time while petals of flowers would also be showered on the participants of the procession. Meanwhile, Manager of Gurdwara Janamasthan Muhammad Attiq Gilani told The News that Punjab Governor Ch Muhammad Sarwar, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noorul Haq Qadri and others would also attend the concluding ceremony, which would be held at Gurdwara Janamasthan on Tuesday (today).