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Pak issues 2,200 visas to Sikh pilgrims for Baisakhi  

Expressing his views on the auspicious occasion, Charge d’Affaires, Aftab Hasan Khan, extended his heartfelt felicitations to the pilgrims and wished them a rewarding and fulfilling pilgrimage…reports Asian Lite News

The Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued over 2,200 visas to Sikh pilgrims from India to participate in the annual Baisakhi celebrations, Express Tribune reported.

The issuance of visas is covered under the framework of the Pakistan-India Protocol on Visits to Religious Shrines of 1974, through which a large number of Sikh pilgrims travel from India to Pakistan to observe various religious festivals.

The statement from Pakistan’s High Commission on Thursday said that the issuance of pilgrimage visas was in line with the Pakistani government’s commitment to fully implement the bilateral protocol between the two countries.

Expressing his views on the auspicious occasion, Charge d’Affaires, Aftab Hasan Khan, extended his heartfelt felicitations to the pilgrims and wished them a rewarding and fulfilling pilgrimage.

“Pakistan takes immense pride in preserving sacred religious places and providing necessary facilitation to the visiting pilgrims,” he added.

During the visit, the pilgrims would enter Pakistan on April 12, visit sites such as Panja Sahib, Nankana Sahib and Kartarpur Sahib, before returning to India on April 21.

With the Baisakhi festival — the most popular spring harvest festival for Sikhs — a week away, the city administration has geared up to provide security and all the facilities to the pilgrims at Gurdwara Punja Sahib, Hassababdal.

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-Top News Arab News Travel

Only vaccinated pilgrims allowed in Mecca

Permits for Umrah and to visit the Grand Mosque will be granted to those who have received two Covid-19 vaccine shots…reports Asian Lite News

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SbLDg83tJc8

Only pilgrims and worshippers who have been vaccinated against the novel coronsvirus or have recovered will be allowed into the Grand Mosque in Mecca, Saudi Arabias Ministry of Hajj and Umrah announced.

Permits for Umrah (Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca) and to visit the Grand Mosque will be granted to those who have received two Covid-19 vaccine jabs; those who have received a first dose at least 14 days before their visit to Medina and Mecca; and those who have had the virus and recovered, Arab News quoted the Ministry as saying on Monday.

Before embarking on a trip, a visitor’s vaccination status will have to be registered on Saudi Arabia’s Covid-19 app, ‘Tawakkalna’, which was launched last year to track the Covid-19 situation in the Kingdom.

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According to the Ministry, the people who wish to visit the two mosques or perform Umrah will have to register via the Tawakkalna app and the Umrah app, ‘Eatmarna’.

It added that the two apps are the only platforms that issue genuine permits.

Nearly 10,000 Grand Mosque workers have already been inoculated as part of the Ramadan operational plan, Arab News reported.

Five areas will be available for prayers at the Grand Mosque.

More than 13 million worshippers wearing masks and observing physical distancing rules have visited the mosques since the seven-month prayer and Umrah suspension was lifted last October.

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