Islamabad, Oct 19 (IANS) The Indian High Commission in Islamabad has issued visas to at least 82 Pakistani pilgrims, allowing them to travel to India via Wagah-Attari border for the five-day annual Urs celebrations of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya.

The pilgrims crossed over into India from the Wagah border on Saturday as they started their journey to pay respects during the Urs.

Acquiring and securing visas for the annual Urs of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya has been a difficult process in the past for Pakistani pilgrims considering the hostile ties between the two neighbours since the Pulwama attack in 2019.

However, this year, all 82 pilgrims from Pakistan, who had applied for the visa, were asked to assemble in Lahore two days before their departure to facilitate the visa process.

The positive development is being seen as a step in the right direction with hopes of improved bilateral relations in the coming times.

The Urs of Khwaja Nizamuddin Auliya is an important religious event that attracts pilgrims from various backgrounds. It is believed that issuing visas to pilgrims by India may also serve as a people-to-people bridge between the two countries, fostering goodwill and dialogue.

Many believe that the provision of visas to all pilgrims from Pakistan by the Indian High Commission has happened due to the positive interaction between India's External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar and Pakistan's Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting of Council of Heads of Government, held in Islamabad, earlier this week.

With this, the hopes of seeing an Indian cricket team visiting Pakistan for the ICC Champions Trophy have also been revived.

Team India is expected to visit Pakistan in February 2025 for the multi-nation event. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is yet to formally notify the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) about the team's participation.

--IANS

hamza/as