Amritsar, April 25 -- With Pakistan suspending all trade with India, including to and from any third country through its territory, trade with Afghanistan via the Attari-Wagah border integrated check post (ICP) has also come to a halt. This will affect the local economy, especially small traders and industries, whose livelihood largely depends on this trade.

Located around 28 kms from Amritsar city, this is the only permissible land route allowed for trade between India and Pakistan and crucial for imports from Afghanistan.

After the Pulwama terror attack in 2019, in which 44 CRPF personnel were killed, the Indian government had restricted import from Pakistan by hiking the custom duty to 200%, from a mere 5%. Since then, import of good...