As India and Pakistan resume their first face to face talks in five years today, attempting to sweep aside years of lingering mistrust and acrimony, the people on both sides of Kashmir wait for the thaw at the top to trickle downwards and translate into greater freedom on the ground. But as the explosion that injured some 14 people yesterday on a highway south of the Kashmiri capital showed, the potential for mischief by militants is huge.

The governments of India and Pakistan have demonstrated these past two months that they are determined to stay above the fray. The studied silence in New Delhi as Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf tackled the embarrassment of nuclear proliferation by the father of its nuke programme is an indicator that neither side is willing to derail this carefully crafted initiative.

The foreign secretaries meet on Wednesday, returning to '98 and the formal, structured format that would have served both countries well if the urge to score points had not got in the way. Much rides on these opening manoeuvres - trade worth billions and an economic union that will obviate political ill-will.

The two countries have restored diplomatic and transport links, and the biggie in the cricket crazy sub-continent - India begins its first tour of Pakistan since 1989 this March. It's as good a beginning as any.