South Korean workers commuting to the Kaesong Industrial Complex on Thursday got a nod from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to enter the inter- Korean industrial zone even after the cut-off of military communications hotline between the two countries in the prior day.

The Ministry of Unification said by phone that 161 South Korean commuters to Kaesong crossed the land border and entered the industrial complex without a hitch as of 8:30 a.m.. A total of 530 South Koreans are scheduled to go to the complex on Thursday, while 511 workers are slated to return to Seoul.

"The north side (DPRK) gave the daily approval on the cross- border movement through the Kaesong Industrial Complex Management Committee by phone," Yonhap News Agency quoted an official at the Immigration and Quarantine (CIQ) office as saying.

The approval came a day after the DPRK severed its military hotline with the South in protest against the military drills between Seoul and Washington. The communist nation cut off the inter-Korean Red Cross hotline around two weeks ago.

The joint industrial park in the DPRK border town of Kaesong was launched in 2004, housing around 120 South Korean companies that employ some 50,000 DPRK workers. The factory zone has been believed to be one of the DPRK's main hard currency income sources.