BIG move by Modi govt to hurt Pakistan after Pahalgam terror attack, India imposes complete ban on…, Islamabad set to…
India-Pakistan war: Amid escalating tensions after last month’s barbaric Pahalgam terror attack, the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government has announced another major punitive move against Pakistan, placing a blanket ban on all imports coming in from the neighboring country, effective immediately.
“Direct or indirect Import or transit of all goods originating in or exported from Pakistan, whether or not freely importable or otherwise permitted, shall be prohibited with immediate effect, until further orders. This restriction is imposed in the interest of national security and public policy. Any exception to this prohibition shall require prior approval of the Government of India,” reads a notification issued by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) on May 2.
As per experts, India’s trade ban is targeted to weaken Pakistan’s already struggling export sector that is dependent upon cross-border trade for important goods such as textiles, cement, and agricultural produce. According to a report by The Economic Times, the Central government has inserted a new Para 2.20A in Foreign Trade Policy, 2023, calling it Prohibition on Import from Pakistan.
India suspends all incoming mail, parcels from Pakistan
Meanwhile, on Saturday, India announced the suspension of all categories of all inbound mails and parcels from Pakistan through air and surface routes. As per a statement issued by Union Minister for Communications Jyotiraditya Scindia,
According to Ajay Srivastava, Founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative (GTRI), the import ban and the suspension of parcels, will result in trade between Indian and Pakistan coming down to zero from the current half a million US dollars. “India’s already minuscule imports from Pakistan–barely USD 0.5 million a year–will now drop to zero. No one in India will miss anything except perhaps Himalayan pink salt (Sendha Namak), extracted from salt deposits of Pakistan,” Srivastava was quoted as saying by ANI.
However, Srivastava noted that import ban on Pakistan is mostly symbolic in nature as India had already imposed 200 per cent tariffs on Pakistani goods after the 2019 Pulwama attack that reduced the imports to around USD 0.42 million between April 2024 and January 2025.
Pahalgam terror attack aftermath
New Delhi announced a slew of diplomatic measures against Pakistan after the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 civilians. The Indian government closed the Integrated Check Post (ICP) at the Attari-Wagah border in Punjab, suspended the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) for Pakistani nationals, and downgraded diplomatic ties with the neighboring country by reducing the number of officers in the High Commissions on both sides.
India has also suspended the key Indus Water Treaty, a move which sparked uproar in Pakistan with Islamabad calling it an “act of war”.
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