ISLAMABAD, July 19: The government is likely to include two new items in the negative list under Afghan Transit Trade (ATT) aimed at providing protection to the local industry.

Well-placed sources told Dawn on Monday that the Central Board of Revenue (CBR) has recommended to the Commerce Ministry to prohibit import of right hand vehicles and betel nuts under the ATT scheme.

According to the sources, the final decision to this effect will be taken in the next meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee of the cabinet. The sources said that it was felt the import of the right hand vehicles and betel nuts might be smuggled back to Pakistan through the porous border.

On the other hand, the government had recently deleted seven items from the negative list-refrigerators, air conditioners, television and parts thereof, yarn other cotton yarn; PVC materials; soap and black tea.

With the exclusion of these items, the official said, the total number of items in the negative list would remain at six. The items which were placed in the negative lists-cigarillos and cigarettes of tobacco or of tobacco substitutes; dyes and chemicals; cooking oil; tyres and tubes; soap; auto parts (all sorts) and telephone sets.

Elaborating further, the sources said that Pakistan also allowed two more routes one each at Binshahi (Dir-NWFP) and Chaghi (Balochistan) for import and export with Afghanistan. At the request of the Afghan government, the government had also declared Qila Ghulam Khan as new customs stations in North Waziristan, tribal agency for import and export with Kabul.