Minister urges Delhi to lift non-tariff barriers

Foreign Minister Dipu Moni yesterday asked New Delhi to lift non-tariff barriers put up against Bangladeshi export items.
The minister made the appeal as an Indian trade delegation led by Harsh C Mariwala, vice-president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), met her at her office. Indian High Commissioner Pinak Ranjan Chakravarty was also present.
Dipu Moni said duty-free access of Bangladeshi products to the Indian market must be widened to reduce the trade imbalance between the two countries, which stands at $6 billion against Dhaka.
"Both Bangladesh and India now have new governments with massive mandate of the people and it is high time to take the existing bilateral relations to a new height," she said in a press statement.
Bangladesh will certainly encourage trade creating Indian investments in Bangladesh with buy-back arrangement, Dipu Moni said.
"There was ample scope for further cooperation between the two countries through trade and investment," she said.
The minister said only government-to-government contact was not enough to move bilateral relations forward. "People-to-people contact is also very important particularly for the business community to expand trade and commercial relations," she said.
During the meeting, the two sides discussed easing the visa regime for businessmen on reciprocal system.
The renewal of the bilateral trade agreement and signing of the bilateral investment promotion and protection agreement between the two countries will open new scope and areas of cooperation, the delegates were told.