Attari: India and Pakistan have moved a step closer in their trade ties. Union Home Minister P Chidambaram on Friday opened the Attari Check post. The first Integrated Check Post was officially opened at Attari, bringing along with it the hope that trade between India and Pakistan trade would grow by leaps and bounds.
"It will not only help us economically but our ties with Pakistan will improve considerably," said Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal.
It will help business in our region and also heal the ties between India and Pakistan.
The Integrated Check Post has come up on 118 acres of land and can accommodate 600 trucks at a time. It has new storage godowns, wide roads and a luxurious passenger terminal. It is also fitted with 233 CCTV cameras.
Coming on the heels of the Dargah diplomacy of Pakistan President Asif Ali Zaradri and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the focus now is on other game changers.
The buzz is that a new liberalised visa regime will be signed soon and business visas will be valid for a year with multiple entries.
Both countries have also agreed to remove non-tariff barriers to trade and a dispute resolution body to handle customs issue is also in the offing.
"I assure the business leader that all promises made will be implemented," said Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma.
India plans to open 13 such Integrated Check Posts at other points along the Pakistan border, and if the Attari Check Post alone has the potential to treble trade along the borders of divided Punjab, the prospects elsewhere can be no less.
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