Prime Minister Manmohan Singh looks on as his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani waves at spectators prior to the start of the Cricket World Cup semifinal match between Pakistan and India, in Mohali on Wednesday. PTI

Chandigarh, Mar 30: Expressing happiness at the resumption of dialogue, Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani arrived here for witnessing the high octane cricket World Cup Indo-Pak semi-final encounter and for talks with his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh.

Gilani, who landed in a Pakistan Air Force aircraft on his first visit to India, was accompanied by his wife Fauzia and was received at the defence airport here by Union Minister of State for Communication Sachin Pilot and Pakistan High Commissioner in India Shahid Malik among others.

The prime ministers of nuclear-armed foes India and Pakistan stood side by side at the World Cup cricket match and clapped to each other's national anthems in a symbolic gesture aimed at rebuilding ties shattered by the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Pakistani cricket fans celebrate the dismissal of Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir whilst watching the Cricket World Cup second semi-final match between Pakistan and India

The leaders shook hands with the two teams in the northern Indian town of Mohali at a semi-final match between the South Asian neighbours that have gone to war three times since Independence in 1947.

Such is the fervour surrounding cricket in the two countries that scores of Pakistanis crossed one of the world's most militarised borders to travel to the stadium while millions of Indians have taken the day off work to watch the game.

Aides committed to work for peace

Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani today expressed his happiness at the resumption of dialogue between India and Pakistan and said both he and his Indian counterpart Manmohan Singh were committed to work for peace and prosperity in the region.

”As far as our relations are concerned, I am happy that our talks have resumed. The talks between the Interior Secretaries were conducted in a positive manner. I appreciate that,” Gilani said shortly before leaving for Mohali in India to watch the blockbuster India-Pakistan semi-final of the cricket World Cup. The two-day meeting of the Home Secretaries of India and Pakistan ended in New Delhi yesterday.

Catchy moments of the day

Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani (Left) shakes hands with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as they meet in Mohali on March 30, 2011, prior to the start of the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup second semi-final between India and Pakistan. IAFP	Pakistan's Prime Minister Yusuf Raza Gilani and India's Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (Left) stand for the national anthems before the World Cup cricket second semi-final between India and Pakistan in Mohali, India March 30, 2011.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh shakes hands with Pakistan cricket captain Shahid Afridi. PTI	Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani shakes hands with India's Sachin Tendulkar. PTI
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, (right), shakes hands with Indian player Sachin Tendulkar, with Pakistan's Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani. AP	Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani watching the Indo-Pak World Cup semi-final match in Mohali on Wednesday. PTI

(Agencies)