As part of its humanitarian support to the people of Afghanistan under the World Food Program (WFP), India dispatched a shipment of 3,000 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan on Saturday through the Pakistani land route.
Ministry of External Affairs Spokesman Arindam Bagchi tweeted, “Our commitment to provide humanitarian assistance to the Afghan people remains steadfast.”
According to Indian media, a convoy of over 50 trucks carrying over 3,000 tonnes of wheat moved from India for Afghanistan on Saturday.
As of now, India with the collaboration of WFP has successfully delivered 33,500 metric tonnes of wheat to Afghanistan.
Given that India does not recognize the Taliban’s de facto rule, it has been advocating for unrestricted humanitarian aid to be given to Afghanistan in order to solve the country’s growing humanitarian crisis.
Since August 2019, when Islamabad cut off trade with New Delhi, the Attari-Wagah border crossing has been essentially closed to all exports from India. However, Islamabad granted the shipment permission to pass through its territory in response to a request from New Delhi. In order to supply 50,000 tonnes of wheat to the people of Afghanistan, India requested permission from Pakistan, to which Islamabad responded positively.—Khaama New Agency
