Punjab’s AAP government sought resumption of trade ties with Pakistan

The records of the discussions show that among various issues, Dhaliwal raised the demand for resumption of bilateral trade with Pakistan. “He requested that the trade with Pakistan should be reopened,” state the records. Besides Punjab, no other state raised this demand, according to the records.

The records further show that the Punjab government’s demand for resumption of trade with Pakistan was included n the list of “action points emerging out of the discussion with the state governments” prepared after the conference. This list of “action points” has also been circulated, along with the minutes of the conference. Dhaliwal’s other requests like providing support in agriculture input in border areas (14,000 acres), allocation of Rs 1,000 crore for cold storage for vegetables, financial support for stopping stubble burning, farm loan waiver, funds for agriculture university and financial assistance for improving groundwater levels have also been included in the action points.

Normal bilateral trade between India and Pakistan remains suspended for over three years now. In the wake of India’s decision to abrogate Article 370 in J&K on August 5, 2019, Pakistan, as part of its “unilateral measures”, had suspended bilateral trade with India on August 7, 2019. It later softened its stand, allowing trade in a limited number of items.

Earlier, India had withdrawn the Most Favoured Nation status to Pakistan on February 15, 2019, a day after the terror attack in Pulwama in which 40 security personnel were killed. India also hiked customs duty on exports from Pakistan to 200 per cent on February 16, 2019.

India had accorded Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to Pakistan in 1996 and Islamabad also decided to grant New Delhi the same status on November 2, 2011, but that decision remained “unimplemented”.