Removal of non-tariff barriers (NTBs) and trade disputes will be high on the agenda of the upcoming meeting of Bangladesh-India trade taskforces to be held here on June 4.
A 14-member trade delegation of Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) will arrive here on June 3 to attend the meeting. Members of the taskforces from the Indian side will comprise the delegation.
The 1st meeting of the taskforces will be held at the conference room of Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI).
Sources said FBCCI, the country's apex trade body, is working on the issues and preparing a set of recommendations to place at the meeting.
The FBCCI is also identifying the problems Bangladesh has long been facing in bilateral trade with India, according to the sources.
A competent source in the FBCCI told the news agency that the apex organisation has prepared a list of NTBs to be placed at the meeting. Bangladesh at the meeting will request the Indian government to take immediate measures for removing the NTBs.
The issue of the NTBs is likely to come on the top of the agenda as the local entrepreneurs have been facing hurdles in doing trade with India due to the barriers, the sources said.
The barriers identified by the FBCCI are testing requirements, inadequate physical facilities at land customs stations of India, special labeling requirements for jute bags, mandatory standard requirements imposed by Indian government in 2001, banking difficulties in northeastern India, restriction on export of hilsa as well as chemical test, particularly for textile goods, customs valuation, technical regulations and others.
Six taskforces on bilateral trade will discuss Indian investment in Bangladesh, trade-related infrastructure, removal of trade disputes, non-tariff barriers, and activating the Bangladesh-India Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BICCI), which was formed earlier this year during Prime Minister Khaleda Zia's visit to Delhi.
