Blast near Kartarpur, corridor shut as India foils drone attacks from Pakistan

A loud explosion was reported near the Kartarpur Corridor in Punjab’s Gurdaspur late Friday night, triggering fresh concerns amid already heightened tensions between India and Pakistan. 

The corridor, which allows Indian Sikh pilgrims visa-free access to Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan’s Punjab province, is currently suspended “until further notice,” according to Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.

The blast, reportedly heard close to the Indian side of the corridor, comes against the backdrop of escalating military activity along the Line of Control and renewed Pakistani drone incursions deep into Indian airspace. The Kartarpur Corridor, which connects the Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India to the Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan—a key Sikh religious site believed to be the final resting place of Guru Nanak Dev—had already been closed following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack.

“In light of the current security situation, the services of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor have been suspended until further directions,” Misri had said at a joint press briefing in Delhi.

Meanwhile, Indian security forces thwarted drone attacks on Srinagar airport and the Awantipora air base in south Kashmir late Friday night. Officials confirmed sightings of Pakistani drones over Baramulla in north Kashmir as well, where Indian air defence systems lit up the sky while intercepting the threats.

The blast near the Kartarpur Corridor, which has not yet been officially attributed, comes at a time when both countries are on high alert.