LAHORE: Condemning the Wagah suicide attack in strongest terms, the business community has expressed its optimism that bilateral trade through the land route will shortly return to normalcy.

Soon after the Sunday blast, there were reports that the land route trade between Pakistan and India through trucks could remain suspended for a couple of days because of the incident.

Some 10 Pakistani trucks crossed over to Attari (India) but no Indian vehicle carrying trade goods reached Wagha on Monday, a Pakistani Customs official.

The official said 120 or so truckloads of cement, gypsum and dry fruits crossed over to Attari on an average daily, while the number of vehicles bringing Indian tomatoes, ginger, garlic, soybean extraction and cotton yarn ranged between 200-250.

Reiterating the business community’s stance with regard to developing a joint mechanism by traders of both sides to counter moves that could affect the peace process and ultimately the bilateral trade, SAARC Chamber of Commerce and Industry

Vice Chairman Iftikhar Malik said efforts were under way to normalise the trade at the earliest.

“This is important as suspension of trade between Pakistan and India affects the whole South Asian region,” said Mr Malik.

Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) President Ejaz Mumtaz said traders on both sides were worried about the situation after the terrorist attack. “Such gruesome acts affect Pakistan’s economy badly. It is high time the private sector on both sides of the border should come forward and protect bilateral trade,” said Mr Mumtaz.

Pakistan and India trade goods through Wagha-Attari land route to the tune of Rs300 billion annually according to estimates.

Published in Dawn, November 4th , 2014