Relations between the Indian Punjab and Pakistani Punjab are set to reach a new high with Chief Ministers Parkash Singh Badal and Mian Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif agreeing to sign a protocol agreement to identify mutual areas of interest and cooperation on Sunday.
A high-level committee of officers and Vice-Chancellors of Punjab Agriculture University ludhiana and Faislabaad besides Guru Angad Dev Veterinary Sciences University has been constituted by both Chief Ministers to finalise the terms and conditions of agreement. Sharif is on a two-day visit to the State and would also go to his native village which falls in Tarn Taran district.
Sharif mooted the proposal of a protocol agreement during deliberations held at the Punjab Agriculture University (PAU) here to which Parkash Singh Badal responded positively. Both the Governments agreed to encourage people to people contact as part of this protocol exercise besides cooperating with each other in agriculture, animal husbandry, agro processing and industrial & trade ventures.
The Pakistan Punjab Chief Minister also appreciated the initiative taken by the Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal, who led a delegation to Pakistan to strengthen bilateral ties between East and West Punjab and suggested similar delegations should frequently visit both sides to further explore the untapped potential in industry, agriculture, agro-processing, textile and infra structure.
Sharif said, “Demolish all the walls which hinders the prosperity and progress of both the States”. He said that both the Punjabs’ should learn from the countries of the European Union, who had guillotined the people in past, have now joined hands to usher progress in their respective countries despite of the fact that they have hardly have anything in common. Sharif said that on the contrary Punjabis have almost everything in common so the need of the hour was to identify the area of friendliness and peace to herald a new era of unprecedented development across the border.
He said unlike EU we share a common heritage having natural bonding of language, culture and cuisine. Sharif envisioned better support and cooperation between both the countries to boost up Agricultural and allied activities across the border so as to benefit both.
Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal said that these visits should not be mere formalities but they should be result oriented so as to benefit the entire region. He said that this initiative of fostering better ties between India and Pakistan should have been taken earlier as it could have helped in heralding a new era of development across the border. Batting strongly for relaxing the VISA regime between both the countries, he said that it would help in free movement of the people from both the sides of border, which was direly needed in the current scenario to strengthen the bonds of love and brotherhood between both the countries.
Badal said that the time was ripe that both the State Governments and federal governments of India and Pakistan should make all out efforts for reducing the distance between both the countries. Underlining the need for enhancing people to people contact between both the states, he said that frequent visits of official delegations along with that of the farmers, artistes and other eminent personalities from all walks of life could play a pivotal role in it.