ISLAMABAD, May 21: There are positive indications that the twice-postponed 13th summit of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc) will now be held in mid-November, diplomatic sources told Dawn on Saturday. According to these sources, consensus among the seven Saarc member states is moving decisively towards convening of the summit in Dhaka in November.

It is learnt that most of the member states, including India, have indicated their preference for the summit in November instead of September when most countries will be busy preparing for the UN General Assembly session. A number of countries have already communicated their availability for the summit in November to Pakistan, which currently holds the chairmanship of Saarc.

As soon as Pakistan receives confirmation from all member states, it will consult the host government in Dhaka. An official announcement about a fresh summit date could be made as soon as next week, sources said. The 13th summit was initially scheduled for January 9-11 and then rescheduled for 6-7 February, 2005. It was first postponed due to the December 2004 tsunami disaster and then India pulled out of the summit at the last minute.