Pakistan Investment

[Windjammer]

India allows investments from Pakistan: Sharma
New Delhi, Jun 8, 2012, (PTI) :

In order to strengthen bilateral economic relations, India has allowed foreign direct investment from Pakistan, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said today.

Emphasising the need to increase economic engagement with the neighbouring countries, Sharma said: "We have allowed Indian investments in Pakistan and Pakistan's investment, whatever is the amount, to come to India".

He said that without engaging with Pakistan, South Asian economic integration would not be possible.

"We are clear that without engaging with Pakistan, South Asia Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA) cannot move forward," he said at a Ficci function.

The minister said that in the last one year, trade ties between India and Pakistan have move forward.

To allow investments from Pakistan, the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) had sent a proposal to Finance Ministry for changes in Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) to allow FDI from Pakistan.

Sources said that in order to address the security concerns over investments from Pakistan, FDI proposals from the neighbouring country can be routed through the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) which is headed by Economic Affairs Secretary in the Finance Ministry.

As per the present FDI policy, a non-resident entity, other than a citizen of Pakistan or an entity incorporated in there, can invest in India. The government had earlier allowed investments from Bangladesh under the FIPB route.

Further, Sharma said that Chinese businessmen are also interested in investing in India.
"We will be encouraging and welcoming Chinese investments," he added.

India allows investments from Pakistan: Sharma

 

[Windjammer]

Several new commodities from Pakistan finds way to India via Attari after inauguration of ICP.


AMRITSAR: With the liberalization of Indo Pak trade and economic ties, the only land route of trade between two countries - Attari/Wagah - has witnessed trade of several new commodities which otherwise were traded on Mumbai-Karachi or through third country mainly Dubai. For the first time traders here have imported items like coal, ladies suit material, glass etc from Pakistan besides routine items like cement, gypsum, clinker, a chemical compound used in cement manufacturing, soda ash, hydrogen peroxide, dry dates etc, informed Central Warehousing Corporation Manager, Integrated Check Post, Attari, Rameshwar while talking to TOI on Friday He said many Indian exporters were also exploring possibilities of export of items like plastic granules etc, which were earlier sent to Pakistan through other routes.

However one of main concern of traders still remains unaddressed. "The ongoing illegal barter trade from across Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir is hampering our interests" said President of Federation of the Karyana and Dry Fruit Commercial Association Anil Mehra. Giving example he said they had to pay Rs 8 to Rs 9 per kilogram Customs duty on dry dates imported via Attari order but on the name of barter trade dry dates were being imported from Pakistan without paying any duty."

It becomes difficult to compete in the market and if government want to give full benefit of ICP to traders it should take stringent measures to check the illegal barter trade at LoC' he said.

Several new commodities from Pakistan finds way to India via Attari after inauguration of ICP. - The Times of India

 

[vsdoc]

Pakistan evinces interest in importing cholera vaccine from India
Feb 07, 2012 | PTI| New Delhi.

Source: The Asian Age

Pakistan on Tuesday evinced interest in importing the cholera vaccine tested and introduced in India in 2009.

"We did not know about such a vaccine. Now that we do, I will inform my government about the possibility of using it," said Pakistan Medical Research Council executive director Huma Qureshi.

"Cholera is an issue in Pakistan and we have ignored it for far too long for fear of global stigma," she said.

Qureshi was here to attend the fourth meeting of the South Asian Forum for Health Research, a group of eight nations with common health challenges.

The Cholera vaccine introduced with the help of Seoul's International Vaccine Institute was tested in India first in 2009 in Kolkata. India's department of Biotechnology has since developed a new vaccine, said V. M. Katoch, Secretary, Health Research.

The vaccine was introduced in Orissa recently as the state had seen several cholera outbreaks in the past.

Talking about polio, Qureshi said Pakistan was vaccinating people on every entry and exit point in the country. Incidentally, India which is now polio-free for the past one year had started polio vaccination at the entry points with Pakistan, to avoid its entry into India.

She said Pakistan had stepped up surveillance on its borders.

Pneumococcal vaccine soon free for Pakistani children
– December 16, 2011

Some 80,000 to 100,000 children die every year in Pakistan due to pneumonia, a disease that can be prevented if children under the age of two are vaccinated against it, reported the Pakistan Pediatric Association (PPA).
The PAA noted that the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended the introduction of pneumococcal vaccines in national immunisation programmes, particularly in countries with high mortality rates.

“Pakistan is a country where 80,000 to 100,000 children die every year due to pneumonia, which is a preventable disease through vaccine. Pneumococcal vaccines would be part of our national immunisation programme by March 2012, for which we felicitated the government and international donor agencies,” said PPA Central President Dr. Amir Khan Jogezai.

The PPA noted that the GAVI Alliance (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation) has provided $150 million dollars for purchase of 100 million doses of pneumococcal vaccine and added that by March 2012, 100 million doses of this vaccine would be available in Pakistan. Unfortunately, the PPA also added, that only 50 percent of children were covered under the national immunisation programme.

“In market, one dose of pneumococcal vaccine costs around 5,400 rupees, but hopefully by March 2012, it will be available to children free of cost and this step would help save thousands of children’s lives,” Jogezai said.

To a query, Jogezai said polio vaccine is only made available to the government by GAVI and is given free of cost to children through campaigns and vaccination centres. “Those looking for polio vaccine for their children at private hospitals and centres should know that this vaccine is acquired from government centres free of cost.”

P.S. More than 80% of this vaccine over the next 10 years per the GAVI AMC will be coming from India.

 

[mjnaushad]

Cute

 

[Stumper]

That's a good tiny step forward. GoI should remove some of the other barriers on cement as well.