Pakistan can consider importing vegetables, other edible items from India: Finance Minister Ismail

Pakistan is witnessing a massive surge in the prices of various vegetables and fruits due to devastating floods

Pakistan's Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on August 29 said the government can consider importing vegetables and other edible items from India following the destruction of standing crops due to massive floods, three years after Islamabad downgraded trade ties with New Delhi over the Kashmir issue.

Pakistan is witnessing a massive surge in the prices of various vegetables and fruits due to devastating floods as the supply of vegetables from Balochistan, Sindh and south Punjab has badly been affected because of the disaster.

Addressing a press conference, Finance Minister Ismail said that the government could "consider importing vegetables and other edible items from India" to facilitate people after recent floods destroyed crops across the country, state-owned Radio Pakistan reported.

He made the comment in response to a question.

Pakistan downgraded its trade relations with India in August 2019 after India's decision to revoke Article 370 which granted a special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

Citing a source, Dawn newspaper reported that former security adviser Moeed Yousuf was working on some proposals regarding trade with India.

On record, former commerce adviser Razak Dawood also spoke on several occasions for the resumption of trade with India, the paper said.