India increases stay period for PoK residents visiting J-K

New Delhi, Mar 26 (PTI) In yet another gesture to
normalise ties with Pakistan, India has decided to increase
the stay period for people visiting Jammu and Kashmir from
Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir to six months with multiple entries
to encourage people-to-people contact.
At present, the validity of the entry permit is for
four weeks and the designated authorities for cross-LoC travel
can extend the stay period by another two weeks in certain
cases of health and family emergencies.
Based on the recommendation of the Government of Jammu
and Kashmir, the Ministry of External Affairs extends the stay
for a further period of two weeks in certain cases such as
health or family emergencies.
"To encourage more people to people contacts across
the Line of Control (LOC), India has unilaterally decided to
increase the stay period for the persons visiting J-K from PoK
to six months with multiple entries," official spokesperson in
the MEA said.
In recent past, India has been making gestures to
normalise ties with Pakistan. Recently, both countries have
agreed to resume comprehensive talks on all issues which was
stalled following the 2008 Mumbai terror attack.
Launching cricket diplomacy to give a fresh impetus to
bilateral ties, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Friday
invited Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister
Yusuf Raza Gilani to join him in watching the Indo-Pak cricket
encounter in Mohali on March 30.