Author: Express News Service
Publication: The Indian Express
Date: August 17, 2008
URL: http://www.indianexpress.com/story/349694.html
Seeking to put an end to rumours doing the
rounds in the Kashmir valley, the Centre on Saturday made it clear once again
there was no 'economic blockade' of Kashmir and reiterated it was Pakistan,
and not New Delhi, which was preventing the opening of trade links between
Srinagar and Muzaffarabad.
A few days of traffic jam on the National
Highway 1A during the height of agitation in Jammu has been exploited by some
political groups in the Valley by describing it as an 'economic blockade'
of Kashmir. Fruit growers, whose produce got wasted in trucks stuck in the
traffic jams, were urged by these groups to dump their fruits in Pakistan-occupied
Kashmir.
Addressing the people in the Kashmir valley,
the Centre said the initial bottlenecks on the National Highway 1A had been
cleared and told the people their protests against the so-called 'blockade'
was hampering their own interests.
"Unfortunately, due to calls for bandhs
and other protests in the Kashmir valley, despite the fact that the highway
is through, there have been difficulties in the full and free movement of
goods and traffic," the Home Ministry said in a statement.
The Centre said the situation was being exploited
to raise demands and slogans for opening the cross LoC route for trade and
movement of goods, which the Indian Government had already expressed its support
for.
"As early as on 15 April, 2005, it had
been agreed with Pakistan that truck services across the LoC would also be
initiated to promote trade. It was also agreed to start the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad
truck service to facilitate cross LoC trade in the first half of July 2006,"
the statement said.
The ministry said it was agreed to send a
delegation of chambers of commerce on either side of the LoC to discuss the
various aspects of this trade. But these visits have not happened in the absence
of Pakistani clearance.
"To begin cross-LoC trade as soon as
possible India proposed that trade begin immediately on the basis of the lists
of items proposed by each side for import and export. Pakistan, however, presented
a fresh list, common for both imports and exports and certain other conditions.
When pressed, the Pakistan delegation agreed to reconsider so that trade could
proceed on the basis of the earlier agreement on the basis of agreed lists
for import and export of both sides," it said.
"We had emphasised to Pakistan that they
should not insist on procedural issues raised by them as that would tie up
the whole issue in a morass of red tape and further delay the initiation of
cross-LoC trade. India is ready to commence cross-LoC trade, but awaits Pakistani
willingness to implement the agreement reached in April 2005," it added.
