New trade route fosters hope in Kashmir
Hope in the Himalayan Kashmir region
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Tuesday, 21, Oct 2008 11:56
Lorries have begun carrying goods across the line of control (LoC) in Kashmir, as the governments of India and Pakistan move to build confidence in the divided region.
The opening of a new trade route is the latest in a series of moves designed to bolster diplomacy on the subcontinent following a peace agreement in 2004.
Customs-free products include honey, walnut and fruits going north from Indian-administered Kashmir, while rice and rock salt are among the goods expected to be traded in the other direction.
"Never in my dreams I had imagined that one day I will drive my truck and go to the other side," Mazhar Hussain, who drove the first Pakistani truck through the LoC, told the AFP news agency.
India and Pakistan have failed to resolve Kashmir since their formation 61 years ago and have fought two of their three wars over the issue.
It is hoped the new trade route, which adds to a bus service linking the two introduced in 2005, will help build positive feeling to aid the subcontinent's two governments' efforts to resolve the dispute.
The trade route's opening is the first major development in Kashmir since a new government was formed in Pakistan earlier this year.