New Delhi, 30 April

As many as 786 Pakistani nationals, including 55 diplomats, their dependents and support staff, besides eight Indians with Pakistani visa, have left India through the Attari-Wagah border crossing in the last six days following a government order in the wake of the Pahalgam terror attack, officials said on Wednesday.

A total of 1,465 Indians, including 25 diplomats and officials, besides 151 Pakistani citizens with long-term Indian visas have crossed over to India from Pakistan through the international border crossing located in Punjab since 24 April.

The 'Leave India' notice to the Pakistani nationals was issued by the government after 26 people, mostly tourists, were killed by Pakistan-linked terrorists in Pahalgam in Jammu and Kashmir on 22 April.

The deadline for exiting India for those holding SAARC visas was 26 April.

For those carrying medical visas, the deadline was 29 April.

The deadline for 12 other categories of visas was 27 April. These were visas on arrival and visas for business, film, journalist, transit, conference, mountaineering, student, visitor, group tourist, pilgrim and group pilgrims.

Three Defence/Military, Naval and Air Advisors in the Pakistani High Commission in New Delhi were declared Persona Non Grata on April 23 and they were given one week to leave India.

Five support staff of these defence attaches were also asked to leave India. India has also withdrawn its defence attache from the Indian High Commission in Islamabad.

However, those having long-term, diplomatic or official visas were exempted from the 'Leave-India' order.

The officials told PTI that altogether 94 Pakistani nationals, including 10 diplomats, left India through the Attari-Wagah border crossing point on 29 April; 145 Pakistanis, including 36 diplomats, their dependents and support staff, left on 28 April; a total of 237 Pakistanis, including nine diplomats and officials, left India on 27 April; 81 left on 26 April ; 191 on 25 April and 28 on 24 April.

Eight Indian nationals with Pakistani visa have also left India through the international border crossing point on 29 April, the sources said.

Similarly, altogether 469 Indians, including 11 diplomats and officials, returned from Pakistan through the same route on 29 April; 146 Indians returned on 28 April; 116 Indians, including one diplomat, on 27 April; 342 Indians, including 13 diplomats and officials, came back on 26 April; 287 Indians crossed over from Pakistan on 25 April and 105 Indians returned on 24 April, the officials said.

A total of 22 Pakistani nationals with long-term Indian visas came to the country through the Attari-Wagah border on 29 April and 129 more Pakistanis with the same category of the visas entered India on 28 April.

Officials said some of the Pakistanis might have left India through airports too, pointing out that since India does not have direct air connectivity with Pakistan, they might have left for a third country.

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on 25 April called up the chief ministers of all states and asked them to ensure that no Pakistani stays in India beyond the deadline set for leaving the country.

After Shah's telephonic conversations with the chief ministers, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan also held a video conference with the chief secretaries and asked them to ensure that all Pakistani nationals whose visas were revoked must leave India by the deadline fixed.

The already strained relations between India and Pakistan nosedived further after the horrific Pahalgam terror attack, with New Delhi announcing a raft of measures, including the cancellation of visas, against Islamabad, which hit back with a string of tit-for-tat measures.