The governments of India and Pakistan are actively considering to run the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service on weekly basis, a report reaching here on Saturday from across the line of control said. The bus plies fortnightly, at present.
Quoting sources in occupied Srinagar, the report said that the Indian government has sought report from the Srinagar-based regional passport office (RPO) in this connection. The regional passport officer B S Manwalan confirmed this and said his office had been asked to submit a report, the report said. "We have to submit a report soon as it has been sought from us," he said.
The passport officer added that the proposal was being considered at the highest level after the Amritsar-Lahore bus service was re-started. It was taken into consideration after the Amritsar-Lahore bus service. He pointed out that many people from across occupied Jammu & Kashmir were applying for travel permits to visit their families in Azad Jammu & Kashmir, and plying the bus once in a week would decrease the pressure, the report said quoting the passport officer.
The report said that Srinagar-Muzaffarbad bus is currently plying fortnightly and 30 people visit AJK, and the same number are visiting occupied Kashmir every fortnight. The verification by occupying Indian authorities in Srinagar sometimes takes around one year to complete for the person who intends to visit Azad Jammu & Kashmir.
The report said that during the past three years, 6000 people have visited the relatives living in Azad Jammu & Kashmir through the routes comprising the LoC entry points by Srinagar-Muzaffarbad bus, Teetwal meeting point, Poonch-Rawalakote meeting point and Balnyon meeting point.
Srinagar-Muzaffarbad bus has plied 117 times in the past three years and has given a chance to 2662 families to meet their kins on the other side of Line of Control. The report declared that occupied Jammu Kashmir people who want to visit their relatives in Azad Jammu & Kashmir from occupied Kashmir region can apply for verification in passport office Srinagar and in the office of SSP Srinagar. And for Jammu region, the people have to apply at passport office Jammu and in SSP office Jammu.
Meanwhile, Peoples Democratic Party President Mehbooba Mufti who recently visited Pakistan told reporters in occupied Srinagar that her party has also started efforts to make the bus service once in a week and make the travel easy. "I will take up the issue of making the travel documents simpler, and the bus should ply once in a week," she said.
"If the recommendations of working group are implemented, it will automatically become easier and anyone can visit either side of the line of control, she added, the report said.
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