Technical discussions on Uri-Muzaffarabad road
Talks on increasing bus services from Jan 13 KT NEWS SERVICE NEW DELHI, Jan 9 : Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) chairman J.
S Sahani is heading a 7-member team to Islamabad next week for talks on January 13 and 14 for putting more buses on the Delhi-Lahore route and sort out other issues like revision of fare, visa and other problems.
Sahani would be discussing a new system for issue of the tickets to end the harassment of the passengers who have to queue up early in the morning for days together just to buy the ticket.
In fact, many spend nights huddled under blankets to ensure that they are first in the queue when the ticket window opens.
If both sides agree, the passengers booking tickets on these buses would be issued return ticket so that they find no problem in getting the return tickets from the host country.
The Indians wanting to go to Pakistan can wait for two, three days to get the ticket while it becomes very problemetic for the Pakistanis as they have to waste part of their visa period just standing in queue in Delhi to get the ticket back home.
The 5-year agreement for the bus service signed in 1999 is expiring next month and hence Pakistan had urged India to send its technical team to discuss renewal of the deal.
The meeting in Islamabad may also discuss the technical aspects of the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service to prepare grounds for a possible agreement between the two sides when the bilateral talks begin in February, sources here said.
Islamabad had last month evinced interest in this service proposed by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee as part of a series of confidence building measures.
Most of the members of the Indian team going to Islamabad are technical hands who would hold talks with their counterparts of the Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation (PTDC) which together with DTC operate the Delhi-Lahore bus service.
Two officials of the Ministry of Transport have been included for the possible discussion on other bus routes to prepare the feasibility report for consideration at the February talks, the sources said.
Increase in buses, immigration process, stay of drivers and other crew members, change of restaurants for lunch, dinner and tea at the midway stops, transfer of outstanding payments to each party and repair services are on the agenda for discussion.
Though Pakistan has been pressing for more buses on the route, the two sides would first study the the impact of the resumption of train and air links on the bus service.
"If the number of passengers remains the same or increases, then more buses will be included in the fleet.
However, the decision still needs some time," sources said.