LAHORE: As the pace picks up on Kartarpur Corridor in Narowal district ahead of Baba Guru Nanak’s 550th birth anniversary later this year, the Sikh community fears the fast-track construction undertaken without consulting them may damage the historical heritage associated with the founder of Sikhism.

Ironically, the community’s attempts to convey their concerns to the authorities concerned in the Pakistan government have so far remained unfruitful.

“The region comprising Pakistan is a sacrosanct place for the Sikh community because the founder of the religion spent most of his life there... and we appreciate the efforts and steps being taken by the Pakistan government for security and upkeep of these sacred places. The most important task in this respect is construction of Kartarpur Corridor and making it operational by Baba Ji’s 550th birth anniversary. The development work on the project is being executed at a fast pace,” says Gurmeet Kaur, a Sikh activist based in Atlanta, US.

“But, the Sikhs world over fear an irreparable loss to their most sacred heritage during the ongoing construction work at Kartarpur Sahib for lacking appropriate consultation with the community. The work doesn’t convey the spiritual and historical essence of the place,” she says while talking to Dawn over the phone from the US.

She claims that a number of letters have been written to the prime minister, the army chief and other high-ups in the Pakistan government between January and June this year by multiple Sikh organisations.

Close to 20,000 Sikhs from across the world have also signed a petition asking the fields of Baba Nanak be preserved as heritage and Kartarpur be set up as an ecological haven preserving the sanctity and vision of the space as Guru Nanak had established it. The petition has also been sent to the aforementioned authorities with no written or verbal acknowledgement of the communiqués, let alone any assurance for the redressal of the community’s concerns, she claims.

“As a last resort, we have begun sending open letters to the Pakistan authorities to draw their attention towards our wish that our children want to connect to Baba Nanak’s Kartarpur in the way he lived, farmed and taught (his disciples).”

She further says: “Our next generations will never want to visit the heritage crowded by modern, unsightly commercial buildings or set up as a concrete jungle depriving the land of its true spirit, history, rich cultural, ecological, and religious heritage.

“We understand that new construction must be done to accommodate the visitors that the corridor and the visa ease on Sikh religious tourism will bring, but this must not be done at the cost of the heritage or ecological destruction.”

Ms Kaur says the Sikhs demanded that any new construction be planned at least a kilometre from the current complex that is outside the 100 acres of the preserved fields making them home to the flora and fauna that Guru Nanak experienced, derived inspiration from and spoke about in Gurbani extensively.

She further demanded that only foot-trails should connect the parking terminals with the main complex with zero-emission transport mechanism for the disabled and the elderly; and all roads must stop at the outskirts of the preserved fields.

Ms Kaur desires that Islamabad consults or involves the Sikh diaspora and Pakistan’s heritage and archaeological experts in key decision making, planning and oversight of work and projects related to the preservation and upkeep of the Sikh holy sites in the country.

Published in Dawn, June 26th, 2019