Bangladesh urges India to lift up restrictions on seed import

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Bangladesh yesterday demanded the withdrawal of a good bar on seed imports from India to boost bilateral cooperation in the agricultural sector.

Agro mechanisation, improving the quality of yields and food products could be potential fields for cooperation between the several countries, said officials from Bangladesh.

"Bangladesh will appreciate if India gets rid of its export barrier about seeds," explained Muhammad Abdur Razzaque, agriculture minister.

"We wish to see extra cooperation in agro processing. Indian companies can create manufacturing plants inside our financial zone," he added.

The minister was speaking at the 'India Bangladesh digital conference on agriculture sector', that was accompanied by a business-to-business session, according to a statement from the Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Market (FBCCI).

The conference was jointly organised by the FBCCI and Confederation of Indian Industries (CII). India is not just a neighbour but also an excellent friend of Bangladesh, Commerce Minister Tipu Munshi said at the discussion.

"India may be the second largest trade spouse of Bangladesh but the trade stability is in India's favour."

The minister also said the Indian anti-dumping duty on export of jute to Indian marketplaces from Bangladesh has been adversely affecting the country's jute sector.

"Bangladesh is India's major trade partner in southern Asia. The partnership is normally a role model in this area," explained Piyush Goyal, Indian minister of commerce and market, railways and customer affairs, food and open public distribution.

The Indian minister, who joined the debate through a virtual platform, said he strongly believes that agriculture has the potential to play a large role between your two countries.

Bangladesh is one of the top three market segments for Mahindra, said Pawan Goenka, chairman of the CII National Mission on Aatma Nirbhar Bharat and managing director and CEO of Mahindra & Mahindra.

"We want to help to make it number one," he added.

No two nations are like Bangladesh and India nowadays, which are built on individual ties and continue to be bonded regarding heritage, culture and anthropology, according to FBCCI President Sheikh Fazle Fahim.

These ties will be cherished and honoured for generations to come, he said.

"Bangladesh's exclusive sector procures multi-billion-dollar worthy of of benefit chain inputs from India that have higher potential customers and you want to jointly do the job to go towards a sustainable trade equilibrium."

"This will be practical through joint ventures, sector diversification and market diversification. And we will be confident that we can perform many goals through better public individual engagement beyond our borders," Fahim added.

Vikram Doraiswami, Indian high commissioner to Bangladesh, said agriculture is a key sector for both countries.

TV Narendran, president-designate of CII and CEO and managing director of Tata Steel, said the two countries can jointly goal the economies of the east to diversify exports.

Source: https://www.thedailystar.net

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