HE benefits of communicating through letters have been well documented through time. For starters, a letter is thought to carry a more considered view as compared to an oral exchange and, therefore, is of more profound value. And universally, if there is a breakdown in contact, there is always the courier to blame for nondelivery. The case of Pakistan and India is different, however. Here those who have led the negotiating teams on either side have played the familiar postmen, too possessive to let go of their baggage. The negotiators politicians, dictators, the ever-present stiff bureaucrats et al have been held responsible for their inability to convey the message of peace. Many routes have been tried to ensure that the right sentiment travels across, with little success, until now when the chief executives of the two countries have decided to return to the basic mode: to write to each other in person, over and above the rest.

It was good to see Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif take the initiative.

The reply from New Delhi has made it all the more worthwhile.

It is a promising re-start. In comparison to the attempted patchups by the exchange of letters in the past, the prime ministers of Pakistan and India are warming up to each other at good speed. The formality that marked the restrained note sent to Narendra Modi by Mr Sharif has been somewhat lifted as Mr Modi wrote back to his Pakistani counterpart. `Mr Prime Minister` has been done away with for a good cause and the Indian leader`s reply is addressed to just `Mian Sahib`. This is some kind of a leap in the space of a couple of letters going to and fro considering the `enduring subcontinental tradition` that requires two friends in the making to pace their relationship in a way that neither appears to move with undue haste.

Some basics don`t change. The spirit has to last as the letters enter business territory and the heat generated by surrounding issues takes over personal warmth.HE benefits of communicating through letters have been well documented through time. For starters, a letter is thought to carry a more considered view as compared to an oral exchange and, therefore, is of more profound value. And universally, if there is a breakdown in contact, there is always the courier to blame for nondelivery. The case of Pakistan and India is different, however. Here those who have led the negotiating teams on either side have played the familiar postmen, too possessive to let go of their baggage. The negotiators politicians, dictators, the ever-present stiff bureaucrats et al have been held responsible for their inability to convey the message of peace. Many routes have been tried to ensure that the right sentiment travels across, with little success, until now when the chief executives of the two countries have decided to return to the basic mode: to write to each other in person, over and above the rest.

It was good to see Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif take the initiative.

The reply from New Delhi has made it all the more worthwhile.

It is a promising re-start. In comparison to the attempted patchups by the exchange of letters in the past, the prime ministers of Pakistan and India are warming up to each other at good speed. The formality that marked the restrained note sent to Narendra Modi by Mr Sharif has been somewhat lifted as Mr Modi wrote back to his Pakistani counterpart. `Mr Prime Minister` has been done away with for a good cause and the Indian leader`s reply is addressed to just `Mian Sahib`. This is some kind of a leap in the space of a couple of letters going to and fro considering the `enduring subcontinental tradition` that requires two friends in the making to pace their relationship in a way that neither appears to move with undue haste.

Some basics don`t change. The spirit has to last as the letters enter business territory and the heat generated by surrounding issues takes over personal warmth.