23-member business delegation off to New Delhi; deals on border hats, trucks movement procedure to be inked on Oct 23

By AKM Moinuddin

Dhaka, Oct 21 (UNB) – A 23-member business delegation led by Commerce Minister Faruk Khan left here for New Delhi Thursday afternoon seeking to forge closer, mutually beneficial economic ties with India to narrow the huge trade gap Bantgladesh suffers with its bigger neighbor.
Bangladesh will sign two agreements – one on border hats and another on ‘Standard Operating Procedures (SOP)’ for allowing plying of both countries’ trucks - on October 23 (Saturday), officials said.
The border hats, earlier scheduled to be launched on April 14 or Pahela Baishakh, the first day of the Bangla New Year, are likely to go into operation by December this year.
Initially, two places have been selected for the border hats, a common marketplace for both Bangladeshis and Indians to boost local business and trade between the two neighbors.
In the first phase, two border hats will be opened in Bangladesh - Lauarghar in Sunamganj and Baliamari in Kurigram district - along the international border while on the Indian side the border hats will be introduced at Kalaichar and Bala in Meghalaya.
The two countries had agreed to set up the border hats along their international border in the northeast early this year when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina visited India.
Meanwhile, Bangladesh expects something tangible in terms of trade and investment from the tour, said a member of the delegation.
The business delegation comprises seven government representatives from Bangladesh Land Ports Authority, National Board of Revenue, Foreign Ministry, Commerce Ministry and Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institute (BSTI) and 16 representatives from different business bodies.
The representatives from the business bodies include FBCCI president AK Azad, SAARC-CCI president Annisul Huq and India Bangladesh Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IBCCI) president Abdul Matlub Ahmed, FBCCI directors MA Momen and Abdul Hai Sarker, Bangladesh Finished Leather and Leatherwoods and Footwear Exporters Association President MA Rashid Bhuiyan, BGMEA Vice President Faruque Hossain, BKMEA Vice President AH Aslam Sunny and DCCI director Nessar Maksud Khan.
Commerce ministry sources said Bangladesh would emphasize on further reducing the negative list for access to Indian market, removal of complexities over cotton import from India, existing problems relating to jute bags export and how the Indian investment in Bangladesh can be boosted.
The delegation will return home on October 24.
A FBCCI press release says, during the visit, the business delegation will interact with the counterparts of India and raise the issue of enhancing Bangladesh’s export to India.
The delegation will meet Indian Commerce Minister, leaders of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry and the Confederation of Indian Industry.
During the meeting with the Indian Chambers, the delegation would emphasis larger export from Bangladesh to reduce the huge trade gap between the two countries.
END/UNB/