SAARC Conference among Home Ministerâ??s begins in New Delhi

Oct 23: The last two editions of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit laid emphasis on greater cooperation between the SAARC members to fight terrorism, seems to be the focal point this time around also on the three day SAARC Conference which begins in national capital on Tuesday.

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The associated nations being infested with the pest of terrorism have come to pave a single goal to curb terrorism, organised crimes, narcotics, smuggling and human trafficking in their respective countries.

Comprehensive mechanism to draw mutual legal assistance to check trans-border crime and trafficking of children and women will be high on the agenda in this conference of Home Ministers and senior officials of SAARC countries.

According to the Home Ministry sources, the Police Chiefs of SAARC nations will discuss on these issues on the opening day on October 23 while the Home Ministers of these countries will take up the matters on the second day.

The final shape of the deliberations will come up on last day of the conference.

The meeting holds significance in the light of a series of attack in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, where the respective government is trying hard to grapple with the situation. Especially featuring the trans-border magnitude in the wake of blasts occurred at Ludhiana cinema hall, Ajmer dargah and twin blast in Hyderabad.

SAARC, the brainchild of late Bangladeshi President Zia Ur Rehman, the association is an economic and political organisation of eight countries across South Asia.

In August 1983, the leaders adopted the Declaration on South Asian Regional Cooperation during a summit which was held in New Delhi. The seven South Asian countries, which also included Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan, agreed on various areas of cooperation on Agriculture and Rural Development, Telecommunications, Science, Technology, Meteorology, Health and Population Activities, Transport and Human Resource Development.

It was established on December 8, 1985 by India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives and Bhutan. In April 2007, Afghanistan became its eighth member at the Association's 14th summit.

The summit accorded observer status to the countries like China, Japan, South Korea and America.