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First ever Indian truck crosses Wagah into Pakistan

AMRITSAR: India and Pakistan boosted trade ties on Monday, opening the first overland truck route between the two countries since they gained independence 60 years ago following the bloody partition of the subcontinent.

Officials said the new truck crossing would lead to more trade between the South Asian rivals and mark a major turning point in their fitful peace process.

The first truck, carrying tomatoes, crossed on Monday morning from India into Pakistan at the Wagah border crossing, said Prakash Singh Badal, the top official in Punjab, the northern state where the frontier post is located.

With the opening of the new truck route, officials are predicting more trade between the two countries. “There is a lot of potential for trade between the two countries,” said Badal, who attended the ceremony at the border crossing.

Before Monday, porters unloaded trucks at each side of the border and walked the goods to their counterparts on the other side, exchanging sacks of rice, dried fruits and tea by hand.

When the border opened, roughly 100 porters hurled tomatoes at the trucks in protest because they said they would lose their jobs due to the new policy. There were no arrests. Officials expect roughly 150 trucks to cross the border in each direction every month, Badal said. ap

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