Islamabad: Officials from India and Pakistan today (Mar 10, 2004) agreed to meet again to continue discussions on starting a bus service between Rajasthan and Sindh province.

A joint statement issued in Islamabad at the end of the two-day talks on the issue, said, "Both sides affirmed their commitment to commence the bus service between Khokrapar and Munnabao, and agreed to meet again to continue discussions."

Date and place for the next meeting would be fixed through diplomatic channels, it said.

The talks were held in a cordial and constructive manner, the statement said. The Indian delegation for the technical-level talks was led by Alok Rawat, joint secretary in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, while the Pakistani side was headed by Mussadaq Mohammad Khan, joint secretary in the Ministry of Communications.

The Indian delegation comprised officials from External Affairs Ministry, Ministry of Highways and Transport and Rajasthan Tourism.

The two sides discussed various aspects of commencing the bus service, which has been closed since the 1965 war. If opened, it would be the second of its kind after Delhi-Lahore bus service.

The officials of the two countries would also meet on March 29-30 to discuss starting a bus service between Srinagar and Muzaffarabad in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

The meetings are a follow-up to the agreement between the two countries announced on October 22 for starting these services as part of a series of confidence-building measures to normalise relations.