By IANS
New Delhi : The International Committee of the Red Cross has raised the issue of living conditions of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, as also of those who have been detained by authorities in the state.
The committee's Director of Operations Pierre Krähenbüh raised the issue when he met Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon and Home Secretary Madhukar Gupta during his three-day India visit, a Red Cross release said Monday.
"During my meetings, I raised the subject of the living conditions and the treatment of persons detained in relation to the situation in Jammu and Kashmir," Krähenbühl was quoted as saying in the release.
"I welcome the ongoing dialogue on these matters with the Indian authorities at high level and their readiness to take our recommendations into account," the Red Cross official added.
The committee carries out visits to people held in relation to the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and submits confidential reports on its findings to the Indian authorities on the basis of a pact signed in 1995, the statement said.
Krähenbühl heads the Red Cross operations in more than 80 countries, including India, Afghanistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan. The purpose of the visit was principally to hold official meetings with senior Indian bureaucrats.