Pakistan-India Trade:

Nisha Taneja
between India and Pakistan. This section of the paper discusses the measures
taken so far and the impediments that must still be addressed.
Road Transport
The opening of the Attari-Wagah road route in 2005 was a historic move.
It was followed by yet another trade-facilitating measure in 2007: Trucks
from the two countries were permitted to unload goods on each other’s
territory. This does not happen in the case of India’s road trade links with
Nepal and Bangladesh, which have been operational since Partition. In
theory, transport protocol on the India-Nepal border permits trucks from
the two countries to move on each other’s territory. However, in practice,
goods from trucks from one country are offloaded and loaded on to the
other country’s truck at the border. This is because weak border institutions
have inhibited the effective implementation of policies. On the
other hand, the rigid land border between India and Pakistan, which was
closed to trade for several decades, has enabled change to occur. Indeed,
the institutional framework supporting trade between the two countries is
strong enough to counter lobbyists and interest groups that may have been
in opposition. This raises immense hopes for successful implementation of
further trade-facilitating measures.
Unfortunately, however, road transport has not been developed to
its full potential. Only 14 items are permitted to be traded via road.
The Attari/Wagah route continues to be the only operational option for
India-Pakistan trade, even though India has notified 16 land routes for
trading between India and Pakistan.
A major concern until recently has been the poor infrastructure at
land borders such as warehousing, parking, scanners, weighbridges, testing
laboratories, and other border facilities. A single gate available for
exports, imports, pedestrians, and passengers has caused major congestion
at the border. Congestion is also caused by excessive checking of
trucks due to security issues at India’s sensitive land borders, especially
at the Pakistani side of the border. The need to set aside time for the famous
Wagah border ceremony for tourists has added to the pressure on
trading across the border.
A major problem that has restricted the through-movement of goods
is the requirement of transhipment of goods at borders, mainly due to
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