NEW DELHI: An ordinary Indian is as keen on the success of the forthcoming summit talks between India and Pakistan as, by and large, the people in Pakistan are for peace and good neighbourly relations between the two countries. This is the impression … [the special correspondent] … [has] been able to form after talking to a number of Indians since … [his] arrival here yesterday [June 25] morning. Officials, however, are cautious in their approach in a bid to make people realise that all their hopes may not come true immediately. … Ordinary people here do not appear conscious of the complicated nature of the issues involved. … Meanwhile, teams of officials were leaving here for Chandigarh and Simla to finalise arrangements to welcome President Bhutto and his party and for the summit meeting.

A two-channel telephone between Simla and Islamabad has already been established … to enable President Bhutto to contact Islamabad at will bypassing the local telephone exchange. … At Simla, the President will be received by Mrs Indira Gandhi, who is reaching there a day earlier. After a brief ceremony … the two leaders drive to Himachal Bhavan where the President will stay in Simla with some members of his team and daughter Benazir.

Published in Dawn, June 27th, 2022