KARACHI: Pakistan Friday released 100 Indian fishermen who had been jailed for three years, as a 'goodwill gesture' to India, its South Asian neighbour, officials said.
The fishermen were to be released last Wednesday but Pakistani authorities said they had been forced to delay this because New Delhi had failed to make timely travel arrangements for the detainees.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani ordered authorities to hand over the fishermen on Christmas Eve as a 'gesture' to India, more than a year after ties seriously deteriorated following the Mumbai attacks.
The South Asian neighbours frequently seize each other's fishermen, accusing them of violating their respective zones in the Arabian Sea.
"We have released 100 Indian fishermen who were detained in our jail for the last three years," Ashraf Nizamani, superintendent of the Malir District Jail, told AFP.
"The released fishermen included 91 men and nine boys below 18 years age," Nizamani said.
Two large buses carried them from the jail in this southern port city to the eastern city of Lahore where they were expected to arrive Saturday and be handed over to Indian authorities at the Wagah border post.
Nizamani said nearly 500 Indian fishermen were still being held in his jail.
"Originally, they are sentenced for a month or two by our courts for violating our sea border but since they are foreigners we cannot release them until we receive an official order," Nizamani said.
Authorities in Pakistan estimate that nearly 200 Pakistani fishermen are languishing in Indian jails.
In the past, the two countries have released hundreds of detained fishermen in prisoner exchanges.
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