India would pay compensation ranging from Rs one million to Rs 4.5 million to relatives of 27 Pakistanis who died in the Samjhauta Express blasts on July five.
ISLAMABAD: India would pay compensation ranging from Rs one million to Rs 4.5 million to relatives of 27 Pakistanis who died in the Samjhauta Express blasts on July five.
Preliminary compensation to the tune of Rs 50,000 has been already paid to the relatives of the victims, an Indian High Commission official here said reacting to allegations by Pakistan Railway Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed that New Delhi had not paid any compensation to the Pakistani victims of the Samjhautha Express tragedy.
Compensation ranging from Rs one million to Rs 4.5 million would be paid to 27 relatives of 33 Pakistani passengers who were killed in the bomb attack in the friendship train in February, senior Indian diplomat Suresh K Reddy said.
The compensation for the identified relatives would be paid on July five, he added.
Rana Shaukat who lost five children in the tragedy that took place in February this year would receive the maximum compensation of Rs 4.5 million, he said.
Already the Indian government has paid Rs 50,000 compensation to the survivors immediately after the incident as well as Rs 15,000 to the injured passengers.
India has announced Rs one million for the dead and Rs 15,000 for every injured person.
Pakistan too has paid Rs five lakh compensation to the families of each of those died in the tragedy.
Reddy said India was trying to identify relatives of seven to eight other passengers who died in the train tragedy.
Once the identities are established they too would be paid compensation, he said.
Rashid told reporters in Lahore on Saturday that India has neither paid full compensation to the victims of the February 18 Samjhauta Express blasts nor has it informed Islamabad about the outcome of the investigations.
"It is India's responsibility to punish people involved in the Panipat tragedy," local daily 'Dawn' quoted him as saying.
He said despite the tragedy, there has been no decrease in the number of passengers on the Samjhauta Express.
"People are unable to get tickets despite the addition of more coaches. But, we cannot increase the number of passengers on our own," he said.
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