On a visit to India in August, the Pakistani Commerce Secretary had said Pakistan was open to allowing in specific goods across the LoC without imposing any duty. Pakistan’s offer, however, came with the expectation that India would treat its products similarly.

While India has decided to scuttle the idea of duty-free imports, both sides have almost finalised the list of goods to be traded across the LoC.

India had proposed 14 items for export, out of which Pakistan has cancelled five — leather and leather products, juices and jams, copper and silver, tinned food and fabricated items like gold ornaments. The items that Islamabad has cleared for import are carpets, furniture, silk, Kashmiri fruits and spices, aromatic plants, dhania, moongi, Basmati rice and Kashmiri saffron. However, some of these are part of their sensitive list under the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA).

India, on its part, has accepted six of the 16 items proposed for export by Pakistan. While turning down Islamabad’s proposal to export spices, apples, walnuts, rice, paper and carpets, New Delhi is willing to import precious stones, namdas (a type of mattress originally from J&K), furniture, medicinal herbs, embroidered items and chilgozas.

The list of items and modalities of trade were debated by a Committee of Secretaries headed by Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrashekhar. It was decided that border trade duty concessions should exclude items in the sensitive list under SAFTA.

The Department of Revenue and the Department of Agriculture and Cooperation (DAC) are expected to take the ultimate decision on the finalised trade lists and modalities.

They will then inform the Ministry of External Affairs, so that the issue can incorporated in the agenda for the next LoC meeting between the two countries. However, a date for the next LoC meeting is yet to be finalised.