India, Pakistan border guards exchange sweets at border

Attari (Punjab), Sep 25 (IANS) After the tension between the two sides in the past one year, border security guards of India and Pakistan exchanged sweets at the international border gates here on Friday to celebrate the Eid.

The Pakistan Rangers offered sweets to their Indian counterparts, the Border Security Force (BSF).

The sweets were offered by Wing Commander Bilal of Pakistan Rangers. BSF Deputy Inspector General M.F. Farooqui received the sweets.

The exchange of sweets follows the recent meeting of the director generals of border guards of both countries in New Delhi.

Border guards of both countries exchanged sweets only in March this year when these were offered by the Rangers to mark Pakistan’s national day.

The tradition of exchanging sweets, that was being followed in past, was broken in October last year when the Pakistan troopers said they would not be doing so on the occasion of the Eid.

No sweets were offered by the Indian side as well on the occasion of Diwali last year.

The same situation played itself out on the occasion of Eid-ul-Fitr in July this year, Pakistan’s Independence Day on August 14 and India’s Independence Day on August 15.

"The exchange of sweets happens only as per a pre-decided protocol at a joint meeting of both sides," a BSF officer told IANS.

In the past one year, there has been tension between the two countries over firing incidents along the Line of Control and international border in Jammu and Kashmir.

Terrorists from Pakistan launched an attack on Dinanagar town in Punjab’s Gurdaspur district on July 27, leaving seven people dead.