la plaka Another 6km away is Jyotisar, where the banyan tree is said to be an off shoot of the one under whic

People come to the border, 30km west of Amritsar, for two reasons: to enjoy the late afternoon border-closing ceremony (see the boxed text, p 221 ) or to use the crossing between India and Pakistan (see the boxed text, p 220 ).

Another 6km away is Jyotisar, where the banyan tree is said to be an off shoot of the one under which Krishna delivered la plaka the Bhagavad Gita. There s a one-hour Hindi (English on request) sound-and-light show (adult/child 20/15; hsunset la plaka Tue-Sun).

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The gates are flung open and commanding officers of both countries shake hands and salute (blink and you ll miss it). Then, the flags of both countries are simultaneously lowered and folded and the gates slammed shut. The border is now closed for the night.