india-pakistan

India and Pakistan Jointly operaionalized New Visa Agreement in New Delhi

 

India and Pakistan jointly operationalized the new Visa Agreement on 14 December 2012 in New Delhi during the visit of Pakistan interior minister A. Rehman Malik to India. However, the Visa-on-Arrival will come into effect from 15 January 2013 and the Group Tourist Visa from 15 March 2013. 

 

Government of the Republic of India and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan had signed on 8 September 2012, a new Visa Agreement to facilitate travel for the citizens of both countries desirous of travelling to the other country and to promote people to people contact.

 

Main features of the India-Pakistan new Visa Agreement are as following:

 

Visitor Visa

• Places of visit allowable increased from three to five places

 

• In exceptional cases visitor visa for one year could be issued in the past. Now provision made for issue of visa upto two years in following cases:

 

a.Persons above 65 years of age

b.National of one country married to national of the other country.

c. Children below 12 years accompanying parents in (b) above

 

Visa on Arrival can be granted at Attari/Wagah check-post to persons more than 65 years of age for 45 days with single entry (effective from 15 January 2013).

 

Business Visa

 

Exemption from Police Reporting for Business visa granted to businessmen with an annual income above Pak Rs. 5 million or equivalent or annual turnover above Pak 30 million rupees or equivalent.

 

Group Tourist Visa

 

• Group Tourist Visa for 30 days may be issued for travel in groups, with not less than 10 members and not more than 50 members in each group, organized by approved tour operators/travel agents (effective from 15 March 2013).

 

Entry and Exit

 

• Now entry and exit from different designated Immigration Check Posts can be allowed, if indicated in application.

 

• However, exit from Wagha/Attari on foot cannot be accepted unless the entry was also on foot via Attari/Wagah.

Pakistan relaxes land route trade rules

Pakistan has moved nearer to conceding the promised most-favored nation status to India by the year-end by increasing the list of goods that can be traded via the Attari-Wagah border, a move that will enhance shipments across Punjab. Pakistan has decided to increase the list of goods beyond the 200 items that are at present permitted to be traded via the land route, albeit the full list was not immediately available with the Indian government. The 30% reduction in the list by December is to follow "removal of all restrictions on trade by Wagah-Attari land route"

Why this move by Pakistan? How will this move be beneficial for India? What is a Sensitive List? What is SAFTA?

Now, Why this move by Pakistan?

• The move is part of the agreement b/w the India and Pakistan in September 2012 after India declared a cut in import duty to a maximum 5% over the next 3 years on 264 items, which are part of the SAFTA sensitive list.
• By December 2012, Pakistan will also grant the MFN status to India.
• India will then keep only 100 items on the SAFTA sensitive list, constituting mostly of sin goods such as tobacco products and wines and spirits.

How this move will be beneficial for India?

• India has been demanding for long that more trade should take place b/w India and Pakistan via the land route as costs would come down.
• In the absence of trade via the land borders, goods have to transported via the sea route, which enhances the cost, in particular if it has to be moved by road from Punjab to Mumbai or one of the ports in Gujarat.

Sensitive List:

• Sensitive list is a list with every country which does not include tariff concession.

SAFTA

• South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA)
• Agreement inked on January 6, 2004 at the 12th SAARC summit in Islamabad, Pakistan.
• Created a Free Trade Area of 1.6 billion people in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
• The seven foreign ministers of the region inked a framework agreement on SAFTA to reduce customs duties of all traded goods to zero by the year 2016.
• Came into force on January 1, 2006 and is operational following the ratification of the agreement by the seven governments.
• Under SAFTA agreement developing countries in South Asia (India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) have to bring their duties down to 20% in the phase-1 of the two year period ending in 2007 and in the final 5 year phase ending 2012, the 20% duty will be reduced to zero in a series of annual cuts.
• The least developed nations in South Asia (Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Maldives) have an additional 3 years to reduce tariffs to zero.
• India and Pakistan ratified the treaty in 2009.
• Afghanistan as the 8th member state of the SAARC ratified the SAFTA protocol on May 4, 2011.

INDIA-PAK BORDER SHARED BETWN JAND K, PUNJAB,GUJARAT,RAJASTHAN



IN 1998
SETTLEMENT OF BOUNDARY DISPUTES- IN RANN OF KUTCH
SHARING OF INDUS WATER
DISENGAGEMENT OF TROOPS IN SIYAHIN








AN AGREEMENT BETWN INDIA -PAKISTAN CALLED THE NEHRU-LIAQUAT AGREEMENT SIGNED IN 1950 WAS TO AFFIRM PROTECTION OF MINORITIES IN THE RESPECTIVE COUNTRIES







India in principle agrees to permit FDI from Pakistan
India has in principle agreed to permit FDI from Pakistan. The decision will enhance the bilateral
trade. Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma held that as part of the initiatives to promote
liberal trade, India has in principle agreed to FDI from Pakistan. The procedures, and the necessities,
for permitting FDI are being articulated, and would soon be notified. Both nations have also settled in
principle to permit opening of bank branches to ensure smooth trade. This is the consequence of various rounds of
talks b/w the RBI and the State Bank of Pakistan.



Pak notifies negative list for trade with India
Pakistan issued a notification for switching over to a negative list regime for trade with India, where
the number of products facing a bar on import from the eastern neighbour will come down to 1,209.
As per the notification, 1,209 items have been included in the negative list and will not be importable
from India. Of the importable items from India, 137 products can be brought in from India through the
Wagah land border crossing.
In February 2012, Pakistan had declared that it would be shifting from a positive list regime to a smaller negative list
for trade with India in order to normalise bilateral trading relations.




India finalizes new liberal Visa regime for Pakistan
While inaugurating the first Integrated Check Post (ICP) with Pakistan at Attari border, the Union Home
Minister, Mr. P. Chidambaram revealed that India has settled a fresh liberal Visa regime for Pakistan. He
conveyed hope that Pakistan will also finalize alike regime shortly. Mr. Chidambaram held that the ICP
will alleviate smooth trade b/w the two nations. He appealed to Pakistan to make use of this new ICP and its facilities.




Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari in India
Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari arrived in New Delhi. Bilateral issues are likely to be discussed. Zardari
accompanied by his 23-year-old son Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, went to Ajmer to offer prayers at the Sufi shrine of Khwaja
Moinuddin Chishti. Zardari took over the reigns of Pakistan Peoples Party after the death of his mother Benazir Bhutto,
in 2007.






Pak to turn from +ve to -ve list for trade with India
As the Pakistan’s Cabinet gave its approval for 1,209 strong –ve list of items in which bilateral trade is barred, Pakistan to turn to –ve list for trade with India. This will subsequently open up Business opportunities in around 6,850 commodities. As of now 1,900-odd items are traded with Pakistan. This will also make the way for the award of MFN (Most Favoured Nation) Status to India by Pakistan as prescribed by the WTO committals and thus ending the discriminatory trade regime that Pakistan has had for India. Pakistan was awarded the MFN Status by India in 1996.






No decision on Siachen confrontation between India-Pak
No progress was achieved on resolving the military dispute on the Siachen glacier b/w India and Pakistan and both the
sides stuck to their stated positions.
 Pakistani restated its call for demilitarization of the Siachen and moving the troops back to the positions in 1984
and also called for the resolution of the dispute in the light of arrangements discussed in 1989 and 1992
 Indian government cleared that any settlement must include the authentication and demarcation of current
military positions on Siachen.The decision is targeted at foiling the possible re-induction of troops by Pakistan
after any demilitarization of the glacier





India and Pakistan negotiate on Siachen
 Pakistan and India initiated 2-day talks search for a solution to the dispute over Siachen Glacier, the world’s
highest battle field.
 The Indian side headed by Defence Secretary Shashikant Sharma while the Pakistani side led by Defence
Secretary Nargis Sethi.
Current Affairs Published on www.gktoday.in from January 1, 2012 to
September 10, 2012
 The Siachen Glacier dispute was highlighted when Pakistan lost 140 soldiers in a massive avalanche that struck a
Pakistan Army camp
 Pakistani Army chief General Ashfaq Pervaz Kayani called for a solution to the confrontation and demilitarization
of the glacier.











India to slash import duties on 234 Items from Pakistan
The Union Cabinet Okayed the Commerce Ministry’s proposal to reduce the list of sensitive items under South Asian
Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) for Pakistan by 30%. India will also slash import duties on about 234 items from
Pakistan under the bilateral trade normalization programme. India seeks a quid pro quo form Pakistan and wants it to
allow goods to be traded through the land routes
Pakistan allows only 137 items to be imported via the Attari land route. The remaining goods are imported via sea
route which makes exports largely impossible for Indian traders. Indian authorities have been demanding Pakistan to
permit all goods to be traded through land, but the demand has not been agreed.
India and Pakistan began the trade normalization process in early 2011 which later paved way for speedy liberalization
of trade and investments.











Pakistan against India’s move to fill dam Nimoo-Bazgo dam
Pakistan is against India’s move to fill the Nimoo-Bazgo dam in Jammu and Kashmir, worrying it could slash
Islamabad’s share of water from the Indus River.
Nimoo-Bazgo is a hydro-electric project near Alachi village in Leh district. It has power generation capacity of 45
MW.
As per an inquiry done by Water and Power Development Authority secretary Muhammad Imtiaz Tajwar, Pakistan’s
former Indus Waters Commissioner Jamaat Ali Shah is responsible for the delay in the issue and losing the opportunity
to take the Nimoo-Bazgo project with a neutral expert or a court of arbitration. The report makes Shah responsible for
falling short to establish how India had managed to secure carbon credits for the Nimoo-Bazgo project. It held that
Shah could not collect documentary evidence regarding accumulation of carbon credits by India during the probe.
Countering this, Pakistan blames late response of India with the project details, despite reminders.

India opens door for FDI from Pakistan
 India allowed foreign direct investment (FDI) from Pakistan.
 But it will be only through government route and not through the automatic route.
 Earlier, no individual residing in Pakistan or a company based there was permitted to invest as FDI in India.

 Except a few sectors- Defense, Space and Atomic energy, Govt has allowed all kinds of investments and that too
without a cap.
 Measures On, to aid greater export and imports of essential commodities b/w the two nations.
 Earlier Pakistan scrapped the positive list with India. The move unlocked its markets to a wide range of Indian
goods. However, it brought in a negative list of 1,209 items it couldn’t import from India. India can now export
more than 7,500 tariff lines to Pakistan.















India-Pakistan exchange list of Nuclear Installations
 On January 1, 2012 , India and Pakistan have exchanged the list of nuclear installations and facilities covered
under the Agreement on the Prohibition of Attack against Nuclear Installations between two countries.
 The agreement was signed on December 31, 1988 and entered into force on January 27, 1991. The agreement
makes a provision that two countries inform each other of nuclear installations and facilities to be covered under
the Agreement on the first of January of every calendar year. The exchange of information took place via
diplomatic channels.




Pakistan releases Indian nationals and fishermen as goodwill gesture
 Pakistan would hand over 183 Indian nationals including 179 fishermen to the Indian authorities at the Wagah
border.

 The latest release is a part of measures to normalise bilateral ties with India.
 India welcomes the move as a positive development.





Agreement between India & Pakistan on settlement of Transit Fee
Issue for TAPI
 India and Pakistan have agreed to settle the Transit Fee issue for the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India
(TAPI) gas pipeline project at the earliest and conduct negotiations in a transparent manner keeping in mind the
landed cost of gas.

RBI permits Indian entities to made direct investments in Pakistan

Giving a fillip to bilateral trade and investments b/w India and Pak, RBI allowed India entities to make

direct investments in Pakistan.The decision comes after India recently allowed investment from Pakistan. RBI will make necessary amendments in the Foreign Exchange Management (Transfer or Issue of Any Foreign Security) Regulations,2004, to implement the move. Trade b/w the two nations stood at about $3 billion and it is expected to touch $6 billion in the next 3 years.


Under the new liberalised visa agreement signed between India
and Pakistan, for whom visa on arrival is provided----------]persons of 65+
years of age 


India, Pakistan eased visa regime
Indian signed long-awaiting visa agreements aimed to make the visa norms more lenient and liberal.
The new visa regime – the first major modernization since 1974 – in particular relaxes travel restrictions for
businessmen and brings in a new group tourism category. As per the new visa norms:
 Visa on arrival facility will be provided to senior citizens after arriving at Attari and Wagah border in India and
Pakistan respectively.
 A single-entry visa for a maximum period of 6 months has been introduced but the stay cannot exceed 3 months
at a time and it allows for travelling 5 places, which is currently limited to only 3.
 For the first time Group tourist visas (10 to 50 people) have been brought in.
 Business visa has been differentiated from visitor, and the former will be issued within 5 weeks.
 Senior citizens, children below 12 years age, and renowned businessmen exempted from police reporting.
 People will be permitted to enter and exit from different check posts and can also change their means of travel. It
is subject to exception that exit from Wagah/Attari by road (on foot) will not be accepted unless the entry was
also by foot via Wagah/Attari