In line with Ufa promise, Pakistan to release 164 fishermen

NEW DELHI: Pakistan will release 164 Indian fishermen on August 3 in "pursuant to the Ufa joint statement as a goodwill gesture'', Islamabad announced on Friday. The release of fishermen was one of the measures the two countries had mentioned in the joint statement in Ufa in Russia, where the two prime ministers met recently to bring the engagement process back on track.

"A decision has been taken at the highest level of releasing 164 Indian fishermen on 3 August in pursuant to the Ufa joint statement. Pakistan has always kept the humanitarian issues close to its heart, especially in India-Pakistan relations," a Pakistan High Commission source said.

After a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Pakistani counterpart Nawaz Sharif in Ufa earlier this month, the two countries agreed on a joint statement which outlined number of steps to take forward the relationship including release of fishermen in each other's custody, along with their boats, within a period of 15 days. Indian officials said the Gujarat government, too, has moved court to secure the release of Pakistan fishermen currently in jail in India.

Meanwhile, the Pakistan High Commission has approached the external affairs ministry seeking details and the factual position of the reports about alleged Pakistani woman in the custody of the Indian authorities in Amritsar.