India to provide more market access to Bangla

Dhaka has set three pre-conditions for India to be involved in the project: (a) allowing import of hydro-electricity from Nepal and Bhutan through India (b) permitting Bangladesh to export goods to the two landlocked nations through Indian corridors and (c) reducing trade imbalance between Bangladesh and India.

Commerce minister Kamal Nath informed Petroleum minister Mani Shankar Aiyar last month that India was ‘‘planning to accord special concessions to Bangladesh in SAFTA and BIMSTEC which are still under negotiations’’.

His ministry said it has been decided to grant duty free access on ceramics and dairy products and remove specific duty on 204 tariff lines out of the 271 tariff lines in textiles and garments under SAFTA.

As far as market access to reduce trade imbalance is concerned, Dhaka had requested duty free access to ceramics, dairy products, plastic products, leather footware, marble and removal of specific duty on textiles and garments under SAFTA. New Delhi is also considering Dhaka’s request for removing non-tariff barriers such as mandatory testing requirement for items like food, textiles, leather and labelling requirement on jute bags. As a short term measure, India will be assesing the Bangladesh College of Textile Technology and National Institute for Textile Testing, R&D for accreditation.

However, on transit rights and permission to ship power, the MEA is categorical that it would be open to foreign secretaries of both nations working out a joint Press statement, not an agreement, on the bilateral issues raised by Dhaka.

That statement would say that the issues would be pursued within the mutually agreed framework a leave it to Dhaka to take the next step.