India will begin sending wheat to Afghanistan overland via Pakistan from February 22 in Afghan vehicles that can decide up the consignments at Atari, Pakistan’s Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhary mentioned.
With this, India and Pakistan seem to have resolved a key distinction that was holding up Delhi’s dedication to sending 50,000 tons of wheat as humanitarian help to Afghanistan.
Pakistan’s Cabinet had given its approval for India to ship the consignment overland via its territory to Afghanistan final November, after India made a proposal in October. But the transportation itself grew to become a sticking level.
Sources right here mentioned Islamabad needed the wheat to be transported in Pakistani vehicles offered by the National Logistics Cell, a trucking operation affiliated to Pakistan Army. New Delhi needed to ship it in Indian vehicles.
Using Afghan vehicles was a compromise answer.
The decision got here quickly after a pact between New Delhi and the World Food Program (WFP) signed over the weekend to produce foodgrain to Afghanistan as a humanitarian gesture. The pact with WFP was signed on Saturday — between the Indian embassy in Italy and WFP officers in Rome.
The consignments are to be despatched in Afghan vehicles that can decide up the wheat from Atari and take it via Pakistan’s Torkham border to Jalalabad in Afghanistan.
Sources in New Delhi mentioned the consignment can be despatched after Punjab Assembly polls on February 20.
The first proposal from India to Pakistan was despatched in early October, and it has taken greater than 4 months of negotiations to get the proposal applied.
Chaudhary mentioned Pakistan welcomes India’s gesture of sending wheat to Afghanistan, the place a scarcity of cash and meals has created a humanitarian disaster.
In response to pleas by humanitarian companies for a waiver of sanctions, a UN decision in December carved out exemptions, however little or no help has reached the nation as a result of fears of misappropriation by the Taliban. “We want all countries to help Afghanistan. We welcome the Indian gesture of sending this humanitarian assistance,” Chaudhary mentioned.
He mentioned vehicles from Afghanistan would journey via Pakistan to Atari, the place the wheat can be unloaded from Indian vehicles and loaded into Afghan automobiles. These vehicles would then cross again into Pakistani territory. After safety checks at Wagah, they’d be allowed to proceed in direction of the Torkham crossing.
“It’s a security issue as well, because Indian truck drivers don’t speak Pashto,” mentioned Chaudhary.
He mentioned Pakistan had additionally needed certification from Indian authorities that the consignment of wheat was freed from illness, which has now been offered. He mentioned a associated concern was that the consignments needs to be transported in totally sealed vehicles in order that there was no hazard of grain spilling out en route.
India, which has mentioned it desires to assist the Afghan folks, has despatched 5 lakh doses of Covid-19 vaccines to Indira Gandhi Hospital in Kabul, and greater than 6 tons of life-saving medicine in at the least 4 batches via WHO.
(With ENS, New Delhi)
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
