Thaindian News

Amritsar, Dec 31 (IANS) Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived in this Sikh holy city Saturday evening and will be offering prayers at the Harmandar Sahib, the holiest of Sikh shrines, popularly known as the Golden Temple, here early Sunday morning.

Accompanied by his wife Gursharan Kaur, the prime minister landed at the Guru Ram Das International Airport at Rajasansi near here amid tight security measures for his visit in and around this city.

With his government having faced a tough year, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wants to usher in the New Year with prayers at the shrine.

The visit is being termed as a “private one”, a police officer said here.

“He will stay at the Circuit House overnight. Additional security personnel have been requisitioned from neighbouring districts to have foolproof security in place. SPG (Special Protection Group that protects the prime minister) officials are camping here already to ensure all security measures are in place,” the officer said, speaking only on condition of anonymity.

Amritsar Deputy Commissioner Rajat Aggarwal said the prime minister would visit the Golden Temple complex early Sunday. He will fly back to Delhi Sunday afternoon.

Amritsar city has been shivering a sub-zero temperatures the past one week with the minimum temperature Friday morning recorded at minus 2.1 degrees - the lowest temperature of this winter season.

The prime minister, who lived and studied in this city after his family migrated here from Rawalpindi after partition, also has some relatives who are settled here.

A devout Sikh, the prime minister last visited the shrine in March 2009, just a few weeks after his coronary bypass surgery at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi.