Borders should be irrelevant without effecting integrity: Azad

Jammu, Mar 29 (UNI) Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad today said the bold initiatives of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and President General Pervez Musharraf on making borders irrelevant without affecting territorial integrity of both countries have the potential to institutionalise peace and bid farewell to violence forever.

While addressing a national seminar in Jammu University, the Chief Minister said ''we need to think about such issues as joint management of various resources and consultative institutions, be it in agriculture, forestry, environment, tourism or water and power resources, in order to strengthen these ideas''.

He said important international developments such as economic and technological globalisation, international trade and necessities for attracting more and more investment have brought home the point among people especially the youth in both countries to engage each other. It is imperative to make seeking of economic gains and improved standards of living the key societal and national objectives in this scenario, he added.

Azad said there is a genuine aspiration within the state to have a lasting and enduring peace that is evident from the return of near normalcy and very large increase in tourist arrivals in the valley.

There is decline in level of militant infiltration, number of incidents of violence and casualties of civilians and security forces, he added.

The Chief Minister said Prime Minister has been spearheading the historic initiative to restore lasting peace in the state and his latest offer of a treaty of peace, security and friendship to Pakistan has the potential to radically transform Indo-Pak relations. The offer of treaty, which Pakistan has welcomed, could meaningfully start process of institutionalising peace in the state, he added.

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