By Asif Farooqi, IOL Pakistan Correspondent

ISLAMABAD, May 7 (IslamOnline.net) - Pakistan on Wednesday, May 7, set the ball rolling on the way to normalization of trade and diplomatic relations with arch rival India by asking its flag carrying airline to prepare schedule to fly to India.

The Jamali government also sought views from the Foreign Affairs and Commerce ministry on the proposals of awarding a Most Favored Nation (MFN) status to India.

"We plan to start flights to India in a week to 10 days as instructed by the federal government," a Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) official told Islamonline.net from Karachi in a telephone interview.

In response to Indian Prime Minister’s April 18 call for normalization of relations with Pakistan, Prime Minister Zafarullah Jamali of Pakistan announced on Tuesday, May 6, the resumption of the road, rail and air links with India and proposed other steps to increase trade.

PIA official said the airline was issued instruction Wednesday morning by the federal government to prepare a flight schedule to resume air links instantly. But the officials said it will take at least a week or ten days before they could fly to destinations in India.

He said two flights would be operated from Karachi to New Delhi, two from Karachi to Mumbai and two from Lahore to New Delhi. The official said he expects Indian airlines would also get permission to start flights to Pakistan soon.

The PIA official said the resumption of flights to India would be followed by Pie's service to Katmandu, Nepal's capital, and destinations in Southeast Asia.

India and Pakistan banned flights more than a year ago at the height of tensions when India blamed Pakistan-backed militant groups for launching a terrorist attack on the Indian parliament. Pakistan denied it was involved in the attack.

Though India lifted the ban from Pakistan flights over the Indian territory, Pakistan kept a decision pending on accepting the offer for a “suitable time”.

Sources in the federal government also confirmed the announcement of the Jamali government’s decision to award the “Most Favored Nation” status to India was on the way.

“Prime Minister has made up his mind on the issue of declaring Indian MFN and formal views from the two ministries has been sought,” sources in the Prime Minister’s office said.

Prospects of Pak-India trade would get a boost with the declaration of MFN to India. The two countries would be liable to give preference to the businessmen from each others country in terms of duty relaxations and awarding of trade related contracts. India has already declared Pakistan the MFN but it could not be implemented as Pakistan refused to do the same.

Pakistan and India have very big potential in the trade area. Some analyst put the prospected trade figures between the two countries up to $4 billion annually. Presently volume of trade is only $206 million.

Pakistan’s decision to lift travel sanctions against India will enable hundreds of thousands of divided families to reunite. Thousands of Pakistani and Indian families were divided in 1947 during the demarcation of border between the two nations.

More than 150,000 people from thousands of divided families travel by train between India and Pakistan every year. The Samjhota Express train, the only passenger train between Pakistan and India would also be on track very soon, official confirmed.

While such positive developments were taking place, U.S. deputy secretary of state Richard Armitage was on his way to Pakistan. Known as the U.S. administration's top troubleshooter for South Asia, Armitage is due in Islamabad late Wednesday night. He will be having discussions with Pakistani leadership Thursday, May 8, before flying to India.

The U.S. Deputy Secretary of State’s visit comes almost one year after he swung through both capitals at the head of an international diplomatic offensive to avert war between Pakistan and India. His shuttle diplomacy was credited with pulling the hostile neighbors back from the brink of a conflict many feared would turn nuclear.

According to the diplomatic sources, the U.S. diplomat would also visit Afghanistan where recent attacks against the government and U.S. forces have made the security and political situation more fragile ahead of the beginning of a political process wherein the transitional government of Hamid Karzai is to start the process of general election and adaptation of a constitution.