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What Can <strong>India</strong> and <strong>Pakistan</strong> Do To Maximize the Benefits from <strong>Trade</strong>?<br />
• Road and rail travel: Limited traffic, and rail wagons carrying<br />
goods are required to return empty.<br />
• Sea travel: Ships are required to touch a third country port (e.g.<br />
Dubai or Singapore) before delivering import goods, except limited<br />
ports of call between Karachi and Nava Sheva (in Gujarat).<br />
• Services/IT: Heavy restrictions limit professional exchanges/<br />
cooperation.<br />
• Services/Banking: Bank branches are not allowed, and exports/<br />
imports need to be made through a third country.<br />
• Standards: The Bureau of <strong>India</strong>n Standards requires a certificate<br />
for cement, whereas it takes six months (though only three weeks<br />
in theory) to clear certification. <strong>Pakistan</strong>i laboratory reports<br />
produced to demonstrate compliance with certification requirements<br />
for fabrics and garments are often not accepted in <strong>India</strong>.<br />
Finished leather from <strong>Pakistan</strong> requires an additional certification<br />
from the <strong>India</strong>n veterinary department.<br />
• Infrastructure: Whereas <strong>Pakistan</strong> can unload/load 30–40 trucks at<br />
a time at Wagah, <strong>India</strong> can only manage two trucks. A 10-hour<br />
window is given to <strong>India</strong>n importers to unload/load, clear customs,<br />
and reload, but this is hardly ever accomplished on time.<br />
Warehousing facilities on both sides of the border are inadequate.<br />
Behind-the-border facilities are very poor. For example, a major<br />
part of the road linking Wagah with Panipat on <strong>India</strong>’s National<br />
Highway 1 is narrow.<br />
• <strong>Trade</strong> logistics: Goods move by air, sea, and rail between <strong>India</strong><br />
and <strong>Pakistan</strong>. Road routes for trade are limited, and rail and<br />
air connections between the two countries have been erratic.<br />
Interchanges between <strong>Pakistan</strong>i and <strong>India</strong>n railways take place<br />
only on Sundays. There are restrictions on modes of transport<br />
for export goods. For example, cement exports to <strong>India</strong> are allowed<br />
only by train, but exporting large quantities via train is<br />
not possible as the frequency of trains running between <strong>India</strong><br />
and <strong>Pakistan</strong> is very low. There is significant port congestion,<br />
high port costs and demurrage (charges for holding and storing<br />
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