Key Takeaways
- India has banned the direct and indirect import of goods from Pakistan in response to the Pahalgam terror attack.
- The ban is aimed at restricting trade and imports from Pakistan and is a significant step in India’s efforts to counter terrorism.
- The Pahalgam terror attack has had a profound impact on India-Pakistan relations, leading to a range of measures to restrict trade and economic ties.
India has taken a significant step to crack down on Pakistan by banning the direct and indirect import of goods. This measure comes in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, which resulted in the loss of 26 lives.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry, in a notification issued on Friday, “prohibited the import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan”.
Inserting a new para in its Foreign Trade Policy, it said:
“Direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, whether or not freely importable or otherwise permitted, shall be prohibited with immediate effect, until further orders.
“This restriction is imposed in the interest of national security and public policy. Any exception to this prohibition shall require prior approval of the Government of India.”
It said that the para is inserted to prohibit direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan with immediate effect, until further orders.
It was signed by Ajay Bhadoo, Director General of Foreign Trade and Additional Secretary to the GoI.
The measure is the latest by New Delhi to crack down on Islamabad for allowing cross-border terrorism into India from its soil. The Pahalgam terrorists who gunned down 26 tourists on April 22 were acting on orders from handlers in Pakistan.
India has taken several measures to hit back at Pakistan, including suspending the Indus Waters Treaty, closing the Attari border, telling all Pakistani nationals to leave, thinning the staff at the Pakistan HC and its own in Islamabad, among others
