Free movement with a single permit in the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is going to be delayed due to some of the member countries absence in the meeting.

South Asian regional block was supposed to finalise draft terms and conditions in the next two days to facilitate easy movement of both passenger and goods vehicles across the SAARC countries with a single permit.

But three out of the eight member countries in the regional block are not taking part in the meeting that is going to give a final shape to the draft. Absence of representative from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Maldives to the meeting – that is being held at Neemrana in Rajasthan – is going to delay the easier transportation in the region.

Pakistan and Maldives had informed earlier but Bangladesh also informed lately that they could not join the meeting due to their internal reasons.
The permits would be issued after verification of all the required documents and these would be issued by the competent authority of the respective national government, according to the draft proposal. “Permits for regular passenger and cargo transportation shall be for multiple entries and would be valid for one year,” it read, adding that the permits would be renewed every year ‘subject to a maximum of five years’.

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