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India, Pak finalize draft visa accord to ease trav
India and Pakistan finalised the draft of the new Bilateral Visa Agreement to ease travel for the nationals of either country.
New Delhi: India and Pakistan on Friday
finalised the draft of the new Bilateral Visa Agreement to
ease travel for the nationals of either country desiring to
visit the other.
The draft was finalised during the second meeting of the
Joint Working Group (JWG) on visa matters which also examined
the modalities for streamlining the visa procedures, a
Ministery of External Affairs statement said here.
The two-day meeting, which was held in pursuance of the decision taken during the India-Pakistan Home/Interior Secretary-level talks held in March, was a follow-up on the deliberations held in the first meeting of the JWG in Islamabad in June earlier this year.
The meeting was led by Anil Goswami, Additional Secretary(Foreigners), Ministry of Home Affairs, and Nasar Hayat, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Interior, from Pakistani side. "The discussions were held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere. The two sides finalized the draft text of the Agreement which will be submitted to the respective governments for obtaining necessary approvals in order to sign the Agreement at an early date," MEA said.
The two-day meeting, which was held in pursuance of the decision taken during the India-Pakistan Home/Interior Secretary-level talks held in March, was a follow-up on the deliberations held in the first meeting of the JWG in Islamabad in June earlier this year.
The meeting was led by Anil Goswami, Additional Secretary(Foreigners), Ministry of Home Affairs, and Nasar Hayat, Additional Secretary, Ministry of Interior, from Pakistani side. "The discussions were held in a friendly and cordial atmosphere. The two sides finalized the draft text of the Agreement which will be submitted to the respective governments for obtaining necessary approvals in order to sign the Agreement at an early date," MEA said.
According to sources, the draft text provides for
hassle-free visa procedure for the businessmen from either
country.
It also provides for more than three destinations for
visit in each country to the travellers from India as well as
Pakistan. At present, travellers are permitted to visit only
three places in one visit.
PTI