New Delhi (UNI): Three months after India sought permission from Pakistan to transport 50,000 MT wheat and life-saving medicines via the Wagah border to Afghanistan, and over a month after Islamabad agreed to it as a one-time concession, “modalities” of transporting the much-needed succour for the Afghan people remain unresolved to date.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, at a media briefing, said that India is committed to supply the 50,000 MT wheat and life-saving medicines as humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.
“We are in talks with Pakistan over the proper modalities for transporting the wheat,” he said.
“In the meantime, last month India sent by air life-saving medicines to Afghanistan,” he said, adding “We are committed to providing humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan.”
“We are working out the modalities, and as soon as we have an update we will come back to you,” the spokesperson informed.
India had written to Pakistan on October 7 requesting passage for the wheat consignment. However, Pakistan sat on the proposal for weeks. It was only after the Taliban leadership personally interceded with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan in November to allow the wheat trucks from India, that he agreed to it on ”exceptional basis”, in view of the dire situation in Afghanistan.
The Indian High Commission was informed on November 24. But since then, the two sides have not been able to arrive at a consensus over the modalities of transporting the wheat.
India has maintained that humanitarian aid should not be subject to conditionalities, after Pakistan was earlier reported to have insisted that the wheat be loaded on to their trucks at Wagah, which India refused. However, both sides arrived at an agreement to have the wheat loaded on to Afghan trucks, under the UN mandate.
