India, Pakistan exchange lists of nuclear facilities, prisoners

NEW DELHI: India and Pakistan have exchanged lists of nuclear facilities, as well as civilian prisoners and fishermen in their custody, Indian authorities said on Sunday.

According to the Indian External Affairs Ministry, New Delhi and Islamabad switched the list of nuclear installations and facilities under the Agreement on the Prohibition of Attack against Nuclear Installations and Facilities between the two countries, Anadolu Agency reported.

The 1988 agreement requires that India and Pakistan inform each other of their nuclear installations and facilities on Jan 1 of each year.

"This is the 32nd consecutive exchange of such lists between the two countries, the first one having taken place on Jan 1, 1992," the ministry said.

Meanwhile, India also handed over the lists of 339 Pakistani civilian prisoners and 95 Pakistani fishermen currently in Indian custody, the ministry statement added.

On its part, Pakistan shared the lists of 51 civilian prisoners and 654 fishermen in its custody, who are Indians or are believed to be Indians.

The lists were shared through diplomatic channels simultaneously at New Delhi and Islamabad.

Under a 2008 agreement, both countries are required to exchange lists of prisoners in each other's custody twice a year -- on Jan 1 and July 1.

The Indian side said it called for early release and repatriation of "civilian prisoners, missing Indian defence personnel, and fishermen along with their boats" from Pakistan's custody.

"In this context, Pakistan was asked to expedite the release and repatriation of 631 Indian fishermen and two Indian civilian prisoners, who have completed their sentence and whose nationality has been confirmed and conveyed to Pakistan," the ministry said.

"In addition, Pakistan has been asked to provide immediate consular access to the remaining 30 fishermen and 22 civilian prisoners in Pakistan's custody who are believed to be Indian."

The relations between the two arch-rival countries plummeted to a new low after August 2019, when India scrapped the longstanding special status of Jammu and Kashmir, resulting in Islamabad downgrading its diplomatic ties with New Delhi.

Strained relations between the two neighbours keep prisoners in jail for longer periods, and in some cases, even after they serve their sentences.

Both countries often arrest fishermen for violating each other's seawaters due to poorly marked water boundaries and ill-equipped boats that lack the technology to specify exact locations.

-- BERNAMA