In a single day, India took three bold steps against Pakistan in the continued aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack. New Delhi in a series of action imposed a complete ban on all imports from Pakistan, suspended all postal services from the country and barred its ships from entering Indian ports.
The move comes almost two weeks after the deadly Pahalgam terror attack, which has shocked the whole nation. India’s action on May 3 is the continuation of the steps it has taken against Pakistan after the attack.
Here are the three bold steps that India took against Pakistan in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack:
India bans all imports from Pakistan
In a notification, India imposed an immediate ban on the direct or indirect import and transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, regardless of their import status, effectively halting bilateral trade flows.
The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) in an order said that a provision has been added in the Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) 2023 “to prohibit direct or indirect import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan with immediate effect until further orders”.
The import ban on Pakistan has been imposed in the interest of “national security and public policy”. Any exception to this prohibition will require approval of Government of India, it said.
No Pakistani ships allowed in Indian ports
Hours after imposing the ban, India also barred all ships bearing the Pakistani flag from entering any of its ports in the Pahalgam attack aftermath.
India also barred Indian ships from visiting Pakistani ports, according to the Directorate General of Shipping (DGS).
The restriction has come into place with immediate effect, according to an order.
“A ship bearing the flag of Pakistan shall not be allowed to visit any Indian port. An Indian flag ship shall not visit any ports of Pakistan,” the DGS said in its order, exercising power under section 411 of the Merchant Shipping Act.
As per the DGS order, the restriction has been put in place for the “safety of Indian assets, cargo and connected infrastructure” and “any exemption or dispensation from this order shall be examined and decided on case-to-case”.
India suspends all mails from Pakistan
As the third and final step of the day till now, India also suspended all postal services from Pakistan.
“(The) government of India has decided to suspend exchange of all categories of inbound mail and parcels from Pakistan through air and surface routes,” an order issued by the Department of Posts that operates under the Ministry of Communication said.
India’s fresh punitive measures against Islamabad come in view of the cross border linkages to the horrific Pahalgam terror attack.
On April 22, terrorists opened fire at the Baisaran valley in Pahalgam and killed 26 civilians, 25 of whom were tourists.
India has promised severe punishment to those involved in the strike, citing ‘cross-border linkages’ to the attack.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday asserted that the armed forces have “complete operational freedom” to decide on the mode, targets and timing of India’s response to the terror attack.
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