Hasina's Delhi visit may win greater market access for Dhaka

India is set to unveil a package of unilateral concessions to give greater market access to Bangladesh products during Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's visit here.

Officials here said Sunday that India is likely to prune the negative list of goods as far as import from Bangladesh is concerned as well as cut duties on certain importables from that country.

India may announce an increase in the quantum of garments to be imported from Bangladesh from 0.8 million pieces a year, as agreed upon earlier.

The concessions on the trade front is going to be the most important development from the point of view of Bangladesh which has over the years been insisting on narrowing the trade imbalance titled heavily in favour of India.

The goods India proposes to take off its negative list for Bangladesh and the duty cuts to be offered are being negotiated by the two countries and they will be without any condition of reciprocity from Bangladesh, Delhi officials say.

The orders for trade concessions as also India's decision to grant transit to Bangladesh's trade with Nepal and Bhutan are understood to have come from the highest quarters in India as officials believe it is for the first time that while Congress is in power in India and Awami League rules Bangladesh at the same time.

There is realisation in the Indian government that given the close contacts between Congress and Awami League since long, this is the proper time that relations between the two countries now ruled by them should be taken to a new height through mutual accommodation.

The imprint of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, an economist of international repute, on the tone and tenor of relations with Bangladesh will be clear particularly with regard to India's unilateral concessions as he has been a passionate votary of India's neighbourhood diplomacy through economics.