Brisk sale of Pakistani products in Kashmir

Srinagar, Apr 10 (UNI) Trade between India and Pakistan via the historic Srinagar-Muzaffarabad road through the Line of Control (LoC) is yet to start, but the products from the neighbouring country are already flooding the markets here and are much in demand.

Several shopkeepers across the Kashmir valley were doing brisk business selling Pakistani products such as jams, spices, pickles, tomato sauce and vermicelli.

The products imported from National Foods of Karachi (NFK) by Quantum Foods of Panipat in Haryana have become a craze with Kashmiris for their high quality.

Abdul Ahad Ganai, a shopkeeper selling the Pakistani products in Batmaloo area, said the food items were very much in demand.

''People come asking straightaway for Pakistani products. The items are definitely of high quality and well-packaged. We hope the popularity of products will reach every nook and corner of the Valley in the days to come and with it the sales would also increase significantly,'' he added.

A shopkeeper at the Residency Road here said the reason for good sale of Pakistani products was that the people want to taste something different, something which they would not have thought of some years ago.

A salesperson at the leading departmental store, Pick and Choose, here said the two brands of Pakistani pickles -- Shan and National -- have grabbed half of the total domestic market.

Mohammad Ashraf, a customer, said not only Pakistan, but products from other countries should also reach here so that the people have a wide and varied choice.

Several people also expressed the hope that products from Jammu and Kashmir will have the same response in Pakistan and Pakistan- occupied Kashmir (PoK) once the trade route opens across the LoC.

UNI AG RA ND1420