All clear for first Indian wheat shipment for Afghanistan on Feb 22

Despite tense relationships, Islamabad and New Delhi have finally cleared all hurdles in the way of transportation of Indian wheat to Afghanistan via Pakistan as the first shipment carrying food grain is expected on February 22.

A foreign office official confirmed to The Express Tribune on Sunday that India had provided the list of Afghan truck drivers and contractors who would carry the wheat to Afghanistan via Pakistan.

"The first shipment is expected on February 22," the official said while requesting anonymity.

Ahead of the wheat shipment, India on Friday signed an MOU with the World Food Programme (WFP) on the distribution of food grain to the people of Afghanistan. Under the agreement, India would hand over the wheat to WFP in Afghanistan that would then distribute it among the people.

Read more: India wheat transport issue resolved

This will be rare when India transports goods using Pakistan's land route to Afghanistan since Islamabad otherwise never permits two-way trade between New Delhi and Kabul.

But an exception was created due to the precarious humanitarian situation in Afghanistan as Pakistan has allowed one-time permission to India to transport 50,000 metric tonnes of wheat through Wagah border as a humanitarian gesture.

But it took both sides several weeks of discussions where the two countries struggled to agree on modalities. Initially, Pakistan wanted the transportation of humanitarian assistance in the Pakistani trucks under the banner of the United Nations. But India made a counter proposal and wanted the food grain to be shipped to Afghanistan either in the Indian or Afghan trucks.

The two sides then agreed that wheat would be carried by Afghan trucks and a list of Afghan contractors was shared with Pakistan. The official said that all arrangements were now put in place and the shipment would start later this month.

Also read: Decision on Indian wheat to Afghanistan expected soon

As per the modalities, India has to transport the wheat within 30 days of the first consignment. The two countries have decided to cooperate on Afghanistan despite their otherwise tense relationship.

Afghanistan is facing a precarious humanitarian situation with nearly 23 million people in need of desperate help.

Many countries including Pakistan, Russia, China and some European countries were in favour of unfreezing the Afghan assets held in the United States.

But President Joe Biden on Friday, in a controversial move, decided to split the $7 billion Afghan funds between the victims of the 9/11 attacks and for the humanitarian assistance for the people of Afghanistan.

The move is being severely criticised by many as the Afghan Taliban condemned it while Pakistan questioned the US decision for setting aside the $3.5 billion for the victim of the 9/11 attacks.

Pakistan insisted that the utilisation of Afghan funds must be the sovereign right of Afghanistan.

Many in the US are also criticising the US decision saying the funds belong to the people of Afghanistan and they must not be given a collective punishment because the Taliban are now in power.