ISLAMABAD, Aug 9: Pakistan and India will hold two days of talks here from Tuesday on terrorism and drug trafficking, after a gap of six years.

Talking to Dawn here on Monday, Interior Ministry spokesman Chaudhry Abdul Rauf said the Indian delegation headed by Home Secretary Dhirendra Singh would arrive here on Tuesday.

Interior Secretary Tariq Mehmud will lead the Pakistani delegation. The spokesman said officials of the interior ministries of the two countries had met about six years ago and they were meeting now under the composite dialogue process.

Responding to a question about the possibility of cooperation between the two sides in the war against terrorism, the spokesman said it could be possible but a final decision in this regard would be made after the meeting.

The two sides, he said, would also discuss drug trafficking as both the countries had been suffering from this menace for a long time. "As we have common border we both want to eliminate drug smuggling," he added.

Talks on economic and commercial cooperation will be held from August 11 to 12. Pakistan's delegation will be led by Commerce Secretary Tasneem Noorani and the Indian delegation by their Commerce Secretary Deepak Chatterji.

Mr Chatterji arrived in Lahore on Monday, our staff reporter adds from Lahore. Talking to journalists at the Lahore airport, he said that an increase in direct trade between the two countries would benefit both the countries. At present, it was being conducted via third countries and was unnecessarily costly.

Both countries needed to avoid extra costs in trade, he added. Responding to a question, he said trade could prove to be an important tool in improving relations between the two countries.

There were no authentic figures available regarding trade and smuggling between the two countries and it needed to be formalized. Mr Chatterji said increased direct trade could also help both the nations to control smuggling in an effective manner.

Both countries are fighting for their rights in international forums like the World Trade Organization and could join hands to strengthen their stand. The Indian secretary expressed the hope that he would hold positive and fruitful talks with the business community in Lahore on Tuesday. He would leave for Islamabad in the evening.

Mr Chatterji said fears that bilateral trade and the Safta agreement could lead to Indian domination in the regional market were baseless. "The signing of the Indo-Lanka Free Trade Agreement has led to a three-time increase in the Sri Lankan exports to India," he maintained. He said the Safta accord would be of benefit to all Saarc countries.