By Priti naik
India is all set to ship 50,000 tonnes of wheat as a humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan via Pakistan next week. Afghan ambassador Farid Mamundzay welcomed the Indian government’s allocation of ₹200 crore as aid for Afghanistan in its budget for 2022-23, describing it as a “timely intervention” against the backdrop of a dire need for food grains and humanitarian assistance among the Afghan people.
Talking about the Rs.200 crore as aid for Afghanistan in the Indian budget, Mamundzay said, “This comes at a very crucial time when other countries have turned their back toward Afghanistan. India has been forthcoming to support the Afghan people at a difficult time.”He added, “The assistance of ₹200 crore for development is something we greatly appreciate. The ₹100 crore for development of Iran’s Chabahar port is yet another initiative that has been welcomed by the Afghan business community.”
Afghanistan also welcomed India’s decision to continue funding scholarships for Afghan students, saying, “India continues to invest in our future. There has also been support in the humanitarian field in the form of six tonnes of medicines and 500,000 doses of Covid-19 vaccines that were sent in the past few weeks. We look forward to India’s timely intervention in the areas where the Afghan people require the most help.”
Noting that Afghanistan is going through a difficult time and needs developmental assistance, he said, “There couldn’t be a better time than this for displaying the goodwill and generosity that India has always shown to the Afghan people.”Mamundzay said trade with India under the erstwhile Afghan government had incrementally increased over the past 20 years and reached a peak of about $1.5 billion a year before the Taliban takeover of Kabul.
