ISLAMABAD, 25 November 2021, (TON): The government of Pakistan granted permission to India to use its land route to ship wheat aid to neighbouring Afghanistan, where millions of people face hunger as a harsh winter sets in.

Islamabad will also send aid, the prime minister's office said in a statement, including 50,000 metric tons of wheat, matching the level sent by India.

The Foreign Office said in a statement “as a goodwill gesture towards the brotherly Afghan people, the government of Pakistan has decided to allow the transportation of 50,000 Metric Tonnes of wheat and life-saving medicines from India to Afghanistan via Wagah Border on an exceptional basis for humanitarian purposes.”

The FO said the decision of the government of Pakistan was formally conveyed to the Charge d’ Affaires of India, here at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry told a news conference "we have approved to give passage to this 50,000 tons of wheat that India wants to send to Afghanistan.”

He said "we think the people in Afghanistan should be helped in any way on humanitarian grounds.”