More interaction between India, Pakistan people called for

An Indian delegation has called for more interaction between the people of India and Pakistan which can bridge the gap between New Delhi and Islamabad and bring the neighbouring nations closer to each other.

The three-member delegation, led by Vijay Jolly, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party's national executive committee and former convener of the party's foreign cell, on Tuesday expressed these views during a visit to the Karachi Press Club, Dawn online reported.

"We need to look and move forward," said Jolly, adding that "there is always a need to improve ties and that target can only be achieved when the people of the two sides come into each other's contact on a regular basis."

"For this, we should keep visiting each other and hold healthy discussion for that particular objective," added Jolly.

Another member of the delegation said that there was a positive change in public opinion on both sides of the borders.

"You can't eliminate borders but there must be sanity that should prevail and I feel that it has grown over the past few years. This should continue and for that we have to pick positive sides from each country instead of remembering the negative past," he said.

A journalist member of the delegation said that the people of both the countries have been victim of terrorism. She said they had suffered a lot due to the actions of a certain segment of society.

She said that Pakistani artists were welcomed in India and similarly Indian artists were widely admired by Pakistanis.

"It reflects that the people of two sides love each other and their art. We should focus and highlight on this bright side of the picture. The two governments must realise the wishes of their people and ease the visa regulation for visitors from both sides," she added.