- Government of India approval will be required for exception
New Delhi. After the death of 26 tourists in the Pahalgam terror attack last month, India has banned direct or indirect imports of all goods from Pakistan with immediate effect in the interest of national security and public policy. This information was given by the government. With this decision, all the arrival of goods from Pakistan to India will be completely stopped. India’s exports to Pakistan from April last year to January this year were $ 44.76 million, while imports were only 4.2 million dollars.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) said in a notification on May 2 that “Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) in this regard has been added to 2023, under which direct or indirect import or transit of all goods exported in Pakistan with immediate effect till further orders will be banned.” It said that this ban has been imposed in the interest of national security and public policy.
The order said that any exception to this ban would require the approval of the Government of India. Providing a provision under the title ‘Ban on import from Pakistan’ in FTP, it said, “The direct or indirect import or transit of all the goods imported from Pakistan, whether independent or otherwise permission is obtained, will remain restricted until further orders.”
Main imports from neighboring countries during April-January 2024-25 included fruits and nuts (80 thousand dollars), some oilseeds and medicinal plants (2.6 million dollars) and biological chemicals. The decision is taken after the terrorist attack in Pahalgam on 22 April, killing 26 people. After the terrorist attack, India took several steps, including immediate closure of the Attari Border Outpost, which is used for the movement of certain types of goods.
In addition, India has announced to expel Pakistani military Athase and suspend the 1960 Indus Water Treaty. Due to this, trade between India and Pakistan has already come to a complete standstill. After the steps taken by both sides after the Pulwama terror attack in 2019, two -way trade between the two countries became negligible.
In retaliation, Pakistan has also announced the suspension of all trade with India, including trade from any third country through Pakistan. Exports in FY 2023-24 were $ 1.18 billion and imports were $ 28.8 million. Earlier in 2022-23 and 2021-22, India exported $ 62.71 million and $ 51.38 million items and imported products worth $ 2.01 million and $ 25.4 million respectively.