ISLAMABAD: Baisakhi festival will be held on Sunday at Gurdwara Panja Sahib, Hassan Abdal.
About 2,206 Sikh pilgrims have arrived in Lahore from India to participate in the annual celebrations.
Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) Chairman Tahir Ehsan, Secretary Board Tariq Wazir, Pardhan Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee Sardar Tara Singh, local Sikh leaders and board officials received them warmly.
According to the spokesman of Evacuee Trust Property Board, the main ceremony of Besakhi festival called Bhog Akhand Paath Sahib will be held at Gurdwara Punja Sahib, Hassan Abdal.
Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Pir Noor ul Haq Qadri and ETPB Chairman Tahir Ehsan will be chief guests on this occasion.
The security measures have been tightened, as many as 2,500 policemen have been deployed to ensure the protection of the pilgrims during the four-day long festival.
Baisakhi is a historical religious festival in Sikhism, which is celebrated in mid of April. This event marks the Punjabi and Sikh new year. It is a spring harvest festival for the Sikhs.
It may be noted that Pakistan High Commission in New Delhi has issued 2200 visas to Indian Sikh Pilgrims for the festival.
