Indian businesses to invest $3.5b

Anand-Sharma

Indian companies will invest $3.5 billion in Bangladesh's telecom, food processing, manufacturing and pharmaceuticals sectors in the next few years, visiting Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said yesterday.
But he did not specify when the money would flow into Bangladesh.
The Indian minister, who is on a two-day visit, was briefing reporters after a meeting with his counterpart Faruk Khan at the secretariat in the capital.
Faruk told reporters that India has agreed to increase the quota of duty-free import of ready-made garment products from Bangladesh to 10 million pieces from eight million pieces under the South Asia Free Trade Agreement.
Sharma said the Indian telecom company Airtel has already invested $300 million in Bangladesh and will invest more.
"Increased Indian investments in Bangladesh will provide employment and value addition for Bangladesh exports to the rest of the world," he said.
He said trade and transit issues were discussed at the meeting. Both the ministers discussed the use of Mongla and Chittagong ports for enhancing bilateral trade.
"India welcomed the offer of use of Chittagong and Mongla ports and noted that this will provide tremendous benefit for trade and development of Bangladesh and the North-East of India," he said.
Sharma said India awaits Bangladesh's response to the draft modalities on transit and transhipment.
"We have also discussed the potentiality of trade through railway during the meeting."
The Indian minister urged Bangladesh to use $1 billion from the credit offered by the Indian government for infrastructure development.
Sharma said a technical team from India will visit Bangladesh soon to help Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution upgrade its technology for easy acceptance of the institution's certificates in India.
India could supply Bangladesh with three lakh tonnes of parboiled rice and 2 lakh tonnes of wheat next week if the government is ready to receive the shipment, he said.
Faruk said Bangladesh in the last three months has exported to India RMG products worth $3.47 million, or 47 percent of the quota of eight million pieces for the current year.
He declined to elaborate on the transit issue and said the government is working on transit and transhipment on the basis of the study report of a special committee.
"We are working on transit issue now and will talk about it later," he said.
India has given an assurance that it will consider the proposal to withdraw duty on import of 61 products including 54 garment items. The neighbouring country has already lifted the duty on import of jute products from Bangladesh, Faruk said.
The two ministers are expected to inaugurate two border markets in Sunamganj and Kurigram in June.
India will consider supplying Bangladesh with cotton under a special quota, Faruk said.
The Indian High Commission in Dhaka in a statement said trade between the two neighbouring nations has increased significantly.
Bangladesh's export to India has increased six times in the last few years. It stood at $359 million in the first three quarters of the current fiscal year. Bangladesh's total export to India was $304 million in the last fiscal year.