New Delhi:
Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari's lunch meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh during his day-long visit last week seems to have provided a major thrust to bilateral ties between the two nations. India and Pakistan will soon sign an agreement for a new liberalised visa regime for businessmen from both countries.
According to sources, businessmen could get a one-year, multiple-entry visa. Sources also add that businessmen could get visas to travel to 10 cities in the respective country that they are visiting. This would come as a welcome step as rules presently mandate for businessmen to stay put at just one place where they have work commitments.
A dispute resolution body will also be formed to cut down delays and hassles at customs, sources say.
The latest initiative comes just ahead of the inauguration of the integrated check post at Attari-Wagah border on Friday. The move will help raise the number of trucks crossing the border to about 600 from the current 150, thus acting as a huge boost to bilateral trade.
Islamabad has already agreed to a time-frame for granting Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India. This happened during Commerce Minister Anand Sharma's visit to Pakistan in February this year. India had granted the MFN status to Pakistan in 1996. Nearly 6,000 items can now be imported into Pakistan from India as against less than 2,000 items earlier.