10:57, 30 March 2011 | GMT +5

India, Pakistan pledge counterterrorism hotline

DELHI. March 30. KAZINFORM India and Pakistan Tuesday agreed to set up a "hotline" on terror threats, a day before prime ministers of the two South Asian rivals meet over a cricket World Cup match in their renewed efforts to smooth relations strained by the terrorist attacks in Mumbai, India; Kazinform refers to CNN.

Home Secretary G.K. Pillai and his Pakistani counterpart Qamar Zaman Chaudhary met for two days in the Indian capital for discussions on counterterrorism measures, drug trade, forged currency and on several other issues.

"Both sides agreed to set up a hotline between (the) home secretary of India and (the) interior secretary of Pakistan to facilitate real-time information-sharing with respect to terrorist threats," said a joint statement issued at the end of their talks.

Pakistani groups have been blamed for the assault on India's financial capital, Mumbai, in November 2008 that left more than 160 people dead and derailed a fragile peace process between the two nations.

According to the joint statement, Pakistan agreed in principle to allow a visit by an Indian commission linked to the Mumbai investigations. And on its part, India promised to admit a Pakistani judicial panel to study the trial proceedings related to the case.

"Dates for the visit of the judicial commission from Pakistan in connection with (the) Mumbai attack trial will be conveyed by India within four (to) six weeks," the statement read.

A Mumbai court has imposed a death sentence on Mohammed Ajmal Kasab, the only surviving Pakistani gunman from the three-day terror siege of the city. Kasab's lawyers say their client plans to challenge the sentence in India's Supreme Court in New Delhi.