TAXILA: The visiting Indian Sikh pilgrims on Saturday termed Pakistan as their second home as some of their holiest places were located on this side of the border.

Majority of the Indian pilgrims, most of them senior citizens, were first time pilgrims.

Talking to newsmen on their arrival at Gurdwara Punja Sahib in Hassanabdal, the pilgrims expressed their immense joy on visiting Pakistan, saying that it was their good fortune that they were visiting the land of their Gurus (masters).

A total of 447 Indian Sikh pilgrims arrived in Hassanabdal to offer their rituals in connection with the 185th death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, whoruled over Punjab in the 19th century and was the first maharaja of the Sikh Empire.

Sardar Khushwant Singh, who was heading the jatha of pilgrims, said the people and government of Pakistan had always been welcoming and had taken good care of the Sikh holy sites which was why the country and its people were so dear to the Sikhs.

`We are feeling happy and comfortable here and we thank the government and the Evacuee TrustPropertyBoard (ETPB) for making the best arrangements,` he said.

Speaking on the occasion, deputy Jatha leader Harjinder Kaur said Pakistan was very important for Sikhs because this was where Guru Nanak Dev was born and died.

She said the death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singhwas an important event in the Sikh religious calendar as he was the first ruler of the Sikh Empire. Ms Kaur said Sikh pilgrims came to Pakistan with the message of love, peace, friendship and harmony.

She expressed gratitude to the government for granting visas to the Sikh pilgrims.

Talking to newsmen on the occasion, Assistant Commissioner Hassanabdal Arif Qureshi said the local administration in collaboration with the ETPB, police and Pakistan Gurdwara Parbandhak committee completed security, administrative and logistic arrangements.

He said over 600 policemen had been deployed for the safety and security of the visiting pilgrims while filtered cold water, clean washrooms and comfortable sittingarrangements were ensured for the pilgrims.

Responding to a question about the schedule of the visiting pilgrims, Mr Qureshi said after staying for one day at Gurdwara Punja Sahib, the pilgrims would travel to Nankana Sahib on June 23. During their stay at Gurdwara Janam Asthan, they will visit Gurdwara Sacha Sauda in Faroogabad on June 24 and then return to Janam Asthan Nankana Sahib. On June 25, they will visit Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Narowal, and after a one-day stay, they will proceed to Gurdwara Rohri Sahib in Eminabad on June 27, before returning to Lahore. The rituals will end with the commemoration of Maharaja Ranjit Singh`s death anniversary on June 29 at Gurdwara Dera Sahib in Lahore.