India and Pakistan on Wednesday agreed in principle to run bus services between Amritsar-Lahore and Amritsar-Nankana Sahib, the birthplace of Guru Nanak, official sources said.

A technical-level talk would be held in New Delhi to run the Amritsar-Lahore bus service, which is scheduled to start in two months, a joint statement issued at the end of two-day talks in Islamabad said.

The modalities and frequency of the proposed Amritsar-Nankana Sahib service would be discussed in a subsequent technical-level meeting to be held in New Delhi in two months, it said.

On the Amritsar-Lahore bus service, it said, "the two sides discussed the modalities for operationalisation of the bus service, including the designated route, bus terminals, facilities for the bus crew, modalities of visa arrangements and a Protocol and MOU."

Alok Rawat, Joint Secretary of Road Transport and Highways, who headed the Indian delegation and his Pakistani counterpart, Muhammad Abbas said at a joint press conference at the end of talks that the bus service would be started after the next round of parleys.

The two sides on Tuesday said they would also establish hotline communication links between the coast guards of the two countries.

Both the bus services figured in the Joint Statement issued at the end of Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf's visit to New Delhi last month. It said the leader 'looked forward' to the early start of both the buses.

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