India not responsible for delay in visa agreement: Sharat Sabharwal

Indian High Commissioner says delay will affect not just business community but also common people.

KARACHI: After visa regime talks failed to finalise agreements in May, the Indian High Commissioner to Pakistan Sharat Sabharwal said that delays in agreements over the regime were not from the Indian side, Express News reported on Tuesday.

Speaking at a dinner gathering hosted for him by the India Pakistan Chamber of Commerce in Karachi, he said that the delay in visa agreement would not just affect the business community but common people as well.

He further acknowledged that trading with Pakistan and vice versa would reduce trust deficit between the two countries.

“Trade leads to people-to-people interaction and results in better relations,” he said.

He also said that custom clearance and laboratory testing are two main hurdles for businessmen in both the countries.

Sabharwal added that India is working on exporting electricity and petroleum products to Pakistan.