February 28, 2003	Friday	Zul Hijjah 26, 1423

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ISLAMABAD, Feb 27: The Indian Deputy High Commissioner-designate, Mr T.C.A. Raghavan, who was granted assignment visa by Islamabad last week, arrived here on Thursday.

Mr Raghavan, who came via the Wagah on Thursday morning, was driven from there straight to Islamabad in the Indian High Commission’s car.

He arrived in the capital late afternoon.

Mr Misri Vikram, a senior diplomat at the Indian High Commission, confirmed Mr Raghavan’s arrival here when contacted by Dawn on Thursday evening.

The Foreign Office protocol section had been informed on Monday about Mr Raghavan’s scheduled arrival here, officials said.

His arrival coincides with the release of 280 Indian fishermen by Pakistan as a confidence-building measure.

When Mr Raghavan takes charge on Friday, the Indian High Commission’s staff strength will go up to 44 members.

The new Indian Deputy High Commissioner is in his mid-forties and has served in various missions abroad.

His last foreign posting was at the Indian High Commission in London where he served as counsellor. Mr Raghavan was working as director in Finance Minister Jaswant Singh’s office prior to his appointment as the deputy high commissioner.

Mr Raghavan is a close confidant of former Indian foreign minister Jaswant Singh who took him to the ministry of finance when his portfolio was swapped with Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha.

He is an officer of the 1982 batch of the Indian Foreign Service and speaks Arabic.

Mr Raghavan’s Pakistan counterpart, Mr Munawar Saeed Bhatti, is expected to leave for New Delhi some time next week to join the Pakistan High Commission there. However, before he departs, a meeting between the two diplomats is likely.