Saarc lawmakers meet in Shimla on Saturday

The two-day event -- Towards South Asian Unity -- will be inaugurated by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee while External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will deliver the keynote speech.

Former external affairs minister Yashwant Sinha will address the concluding session of the meet that is expected to be attended by 87 Parliamentarians of the Saarc countries.

Organised by South Asia Free Media Association (SAFMA), the meet, first of its kind to be held in India, will discuss how cooperation among the Saarc countries can be strengthened alongside reducing tension.

Keeping in mind the vision of a South Asian Parliament, the conference will deliberate on steps to be taken for continuous contacts among lawmakers of Saarc countries, either through a forum or any other self-sustaining mechanism.

The meet will also commemorate the 150th anniversary of India's first War of Independence in 1857. Shimla has been chosen as the venue because of its association with the parleys on the transfer of power with the British rulers in the 1940s.

Twenty three MPs from Pakistan, including Leader of Opposition Maulana Fazlur Rehman, PPP's Sher Bano Sherry Rehman, MQM's Farooq Sattar and MMA's Liaqat Baloch are expected to attend the conclave.

From Bangladesh, 12 former MPs, including three former ministers M Shamsul Islam, Osman Farruq and Abdul Moyeen Khan are expected to attend the meet.

The conference is also expected to discuss the problems journalists are facing across the region.