HYDERABAD: Former Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral Laxminarayan Ramdas on Sunday said that one of the logical solutions to vexed Indo-Pak border issue in Kashmir could be to turn the existing Line of Control (LoC) into International Border for a fresh start between the two neighbours.
Speaking at a panel discussion here on ‘India Pakistan Relations: Critical Issues and Way Forward’, Admiral Ramdas reminded all that the present LoC was the “Ceasefre Line” as per the United Nations Security Council resolutions. “No one talks about ceasefire line anymore. We need to remind ourselves and our neighbours and respect the resolution,” he said.
Further, talking about continued ceasefire violations from across the border, he said: “We should temper our response in a way to shame them. We could evacuate our citizens here and let them keep firing. How long will they waste their ammunition?” he asked.
He also touched upon the prejudices and mindset of people of both countries which successive governments on both sides, according to him, have managed to ensure, and called for a deliberate long-term objective in the form of a 40-year plan.
“Changing the perspective is very hard. The lost time is past. We should at least start the process of changing the mindset of our children,” he said. He also vouched for better calibration of neighbours.
“Let us send our best bureaucrats to our neighbouring countries and create the best relations. Let us be magnanimous in dealing with them and reflect the size of our country,” he added.
Jatin Desai, secretary general, Pakistan India People’s Forum for Peace and Democracy (PIPFPD), speaking about the plight of Indian fishermen who get caught by Pakistani forces said that environmental pollution along the Gujarat coast has forced the fishermen to go deeper into the sea for a good catch of fish and unknowingly cross the border.
“The sea temperature has gone up considerably on the Gujarat coast. Similarly, the pollution levels too have risen due to massive industrialisation,” he said.
According to him, this is the reason why 355 Indian fisherman are imprisoned in Pakistan prisons compared to just 27 Pakistani fishermen in Indian prisons. He explained that when 800 fishing boats are seized by Pakistan, only 130 boats seized by India.