NEW DELHI, Apr 3:
Seeking to enhance trade between the two countries, Indian businesses today sought the much- delayed Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status, as well as a liberalised visa regime, from Pakistan.
“We want Pakistan to grant MFN status to India at the earliest. We also want liberalisation of visa policy from Pakistan, especially for businessmen,” former President of PHD Chamber Ravi Wig said while addressing a Pakistani business delegation here.
Several industry officials present at the meeting endorsed Wig’s view, saying that these steps will strengthen bilateral ties.
They also wanted more facilitation of trade at the Wagah Border.
Meanwhile, Ayesha Ahsaan, Political Counsellor at the Pakistani High Commission here, said the her country has been liberal in its visa policy. “We issue more visas, Indian High Commission in Islamabad needs to reciprocate this.”
However, Wig said: “We are still encountering difficulties in getting a visa, despite the liberalised visa agreement that was signed between the two countries.”
India had granted MFN status on Pakistan in 1996 but Islamabad hasn’t reciprocated the move till now. It also missed the December 31, 2012 deadline for phasing out the negative list regime for trade with India.
Last week, Pakistan’s High Commissioner to India Salman Bashir said more decisions will be taken in “coming weeks and months” to improve trade ties but did not say when it will grant MFN status to India.
“We are in a way satisfied (about trade with India). Economic, trade cooperation track has seen a lot of meetings between the two sides which has been very positive and (in) coming weeks and months there will be further better decision taken,” Bashir had said.
He, however, had refused to be drawn into the issue of MFN status to India.
The new visa agreement between India and Pakistan was signed in September last year to ease cross-border travel as part of a number of Confidence Building Measures (CBMs).
Some clauses of the relaxed visa regime like multiple- entry and reporting-free visas for businessmen and allowing them to travel to five cities instead of the earlier three were operationalised when Pakistan’s Interior Minister Rehman Malik visited New Delhi in December 2012.
During recent talks, the two sides agreed to increase bilateral trade from the current level of about USD 2 billion to USD 6 billion by 2014. (PTI)
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