The delegation includes envoys from 24 nations, namely Chile, Brazil, Cuba, Bolivia, Estonia, Finland, France, Ireland, Netherlands, Portugal, EU, Belgium, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Bangladesh, Malawi, Eritrea, Costa de Ivory, Ghana, Senegal, Malaysia, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan.
The visit follows India’s February 5 move to restore 4G mobile internet services in the union territory (UT) exactly 18 months after India amended section 370 to revoke the former state’s special status.
The delegation of foreign envoys visiting Jammu and Kashmir receives the traditional welcome upon arrival. https://t.co/GTkhvMUUa4
– The times of India (@timesofindia) 1613541450000
Upon arrival, the envoys received a traditional welcome. They were then taken to the Magam block in the Budgam district, where they interacted with some locals. They were informed about Panchayati Raj and the redress of grievances through the “Back to the Villages and the Block” program, when the administration comes to people’s doorsteps for a hearing.
Jammu and Kashmir: Foreign Envoys Visiting Union Territory Interact with Locals in Budg’s Magam Block… https://t.co/r4mpI0erm2
– ANI (@ANI) 1613544450000
The security agencies are also expected to inform envoys about the threat of cross-border terrorism which, as the Indian authorities continue to maintain, is facilitated by Pakistan.
The ambassadors, who will likely also visit Jammu, will form the third such delegation to visit the Valley since August 5, 2019, when the state forked into the separate TUs of Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir.
A group of 27 members of the European Parliament (MEPs) visited Kashmir in October 2019, at the invitation of a Delhi-based think tank, after they apparently expressed their desire to visit Kashmir to understand how terrorism was affecting India. Government authorities organized a similar visit for the Delhi-based foreign envoys early next year.
(With contributions from the agency)
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