Pakistani Hindus want to use religious tourism to improve ties with India
The Covid-19 pandemic has temporarily delayed the Pakistani Hindu community’s plans to operate charter flights for pilgrims between the two South Asian rivals.
“Indian authorities have appreciated our initiative. But they say it would be difficult to give us permission due to the pandemic,” Ramesh Kumar Vankwani, a lawmaker from the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party, said on Friday. If the plan goes through, PIA and Air India would have operated four monthly flights to accommodate pilgrims, he said, adding that there’s a lot of demand for religious tourism on both sides.
Every year, thousands of Indian Sikhs visit the birthplace of Baba Guru Nanak in the Nankana Sahib district located in Pakistan's Punjab province. “Since the partition of Pakistan and India in 1947, we haven’t thought about establishing an air link specifically to promote religious tourism. It’s about time we do that,” said Vankwani.
But while the religious sites for Sikhs are located close to the border, Indian and Pakistani Hindus have to take long detours if they want to visit the temples.
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