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Pakistan allowed to fly helicopters in no-fly zone

     New Delhi: Pakistan on Saturday was given the permission to fly helicopters in the peacetime no-fly zone, which measure one kilometre along the Line of Control, said External Affairs Ministry spokesman Navtej Sarna here today. "We received a request from Pakistan on October 13 to fly helicopters in the peacetime no-fly zone and we are conveying our agreement today to this request, provided permission is taken on a case-by-case basis," Sarna said. On being asked whether India had received any request from Pakistan to cross over the LoC to assist in the relief operation being undertaken in Pakistan he said, "We have seen a news report that India is delaying action on a request by Pakistan to cross over the LoC so as to have access for relief work. It is clarified that we have received no such request from Pakistan".

     India has so far sent two consignments of relief supplies to Pakistan. On Thursday, a 82-ton consignment comprising 5000 blankets, 370 tents, 5 tons of plastic sheets and 12 tons of medicines was dispatched by train through the Attari-Wagah route. Earlier, 25 tons of relief supplies, including seven trucks of medicines were sent as relief by an Indian Air Force (IAF) IL-76 MD transport plane on Wednesday. It was the first aid plane to land in Pakistan after the 1971 India-Pakistan war. The October 8 earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter, with its epicentre near Muzaffarabad killed more than 40000 people in Pakistan, besides injuring several thousands. More than 1300 people were killed in Jammu and Kashmir. Rescue efforts are being carried on in the mountainous areas to reach the several hundreds of survivors still believed trapped under the rubble and rendered homeless due to the quake.