Imran Khan-led Pakistan government has decided to invite Manmohan Singh, instead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for the inauguration of Kartarpur corridor.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi has announced that the Imran Khan government has decided to invite Manmohan Singh to the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor opening ceremony.

Opening of the Kartarpur Corridor holds great importance and value for Pakistan. And after detailed discussion and consultation, we have decided to invite former Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh as a guest to the opening ceremony, Qureshi said.

Qureshi said that a formal invitation will also be extended to Manmohan Singh in this regard.

Manmohan Singh has the religious faith and is highly respected in Pakistan. That is why we are going to invite him, Qureshi added.

The Kartarpur Sahib Corridor is scheduled to be opened on November 9, 2019 as work continues at fast pace at the zero point.

The Kartarpur corridor is being built by India and Pakistan to connect Darbar Sahib -- the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev -- in Pakistan's Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in Gurdaspur district of Punjab. It will facilitate visa-free movement of Indian pilgrims, who will have to just obtain a permit to visit Kartarpur Sahib, which is located in Pakistan's Narowal district across the Ravi river, about four kilometers from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine.

Pakistan is building the corridor from the Indian border to the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Kartarpur, while the other part from Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur up to the border is being built by India.

The four-lane highway connecting the Zero Point of the Kartarpur corridor up to National Highway-354 is being constructed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Besides, a passenger terminal is also under construction.

The corridor will be opened in November in connection with the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev.