But India also needed to grasp the opportunity as "you don't clap with one hand", Musharraf said in Rawalpindi as officials in Kashmir opened the fifth and final crossing along the de facto border splitting the quake-hit region.

Only humanitarian supplies were allowed across the border, called the Line of Control, which before the October 8 quake had been shut for more than 60 years apart from a recent bus service.

The earthquake killed 73,000 people in Pakistan and 1,300 in India, including in their portions of Kashmir. More than three million people were made homeless.

Musharraf said that since areas on both sides of Line of Control had suffered, "I think it is an occasion which should be utilised to reach out for a solution of the Kashmir dispute.

"I only hope that both sides have realised that a permanent, final solution of Kashmir is more possible now because Kashmir has been affected," he said.

India and Pakistan, both nuclear powers, have fought two of their three wars over the Himalayan territory, which they each hold in part but claim in full.

The border has split families, leaving many people desperate for news of the fate of their relatives after the quake.

All five border posts have been opened since then but the move is largely symbolic as only a limited amount of aid is passed across, with officials still vetting the names of people who want to make the crossing.

The border post that opened Wednesday was at southern Hajipir town on the Pakistani side and Uri in the Indian zone.

Both sides exchanged relief items including blankets and rations at the crossing, which was to close in the evening, a Pakistan official said.

The two countries opened the first crossing along the Line of Control on November 7 in Poonch district, followed two days later by another in the Uri sector.

The third crossing at Titwal was opened on Saturday and the fourth on Monday at Mendhar.

Pakistani police used tear gas to hold back villagers who wanted to cross the frontier when the first crossing opened last week, an action that angered Kashmiris.

Each of the five crossing points is to open once a week for crossings.

Pakistan's foreign ministry said Monday it had approved the names of 83 Kashmiris whom India had approved for crossing the border, while it had sent a list of 70 Pakistani Kashmiris to India.

The move to open the crossings after almost 60 years was seen as a boost to the peace process between the historic enemies.

But continued violence by guerrillas fighting New Delhi's rule in Indian Kashmir following the quake has undermined some of the optimism.

Islamic militants have since 1989 waged a separatist insurgency in Indian Kashmir that has claimed more than 44,000 lives.

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