BSF, Pak Rangers reach consensus during meeting in Lahore: MEA

New Delhi, July 28 (ANI): The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said that a consensus was reached during the meeting between India's Border Security Force (BSF) and the Pakistan Rangers held in Lahore from July 25-28. "This was a regular meeting between the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Pakistan Rangers. It was held in Pakistan from July 25-28 in Lahore. The BSF delegation was led by (BSF) Director General K.K. Sharma, while the Pakistan delegation was led by Director General, Pakistan Rangers, Punjab, Major General Umar Farooq Burki. The meeting was held in a cordial and cooperative atmosphere. Consensus was reached," MEA official spokesperson Vikas Swarup told the media here. Swarup said since the last such meeting in Delhi in September 2015, there had been greater adherence to the ceasefire along the international border. "The DG BSF stressed the importance of vigilance against cross border infiltration to prevent terrorist activities and check smuggling and narcotics. Both sides discussed ways to strengthen measures to coordinate border patrolling on the respective sides of the border and address each other's concerns in a time bound manner," he added. He said the BSF Director General invited the DG of Pakistan Rangers to visit India for the next round of these annual talks and the invitation was accepted. The DG-level talks between the two sides are a bi-annual affair, but many a times these meetings have not taken place due to strain in relations. The last such meeting between the BSF and Pakistan Rangers was held in New Delhi in September last year. Last time, the two sides had decided not to fire heavy artillery like mortar shells and ensure that civilians living along the border were not harmed. The two forces had also decided that their officials, right up to the level of Directors-General, will exchange mobile numbers, e-mail ids and fax numbers for swift communication to resolve disputes on the border running through Indian states of Jammu-Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat. (ANI)