India restricts entry of ready-made garments, processed food from Bangladesh

New Delhi, May 17 In a significant trade policy shift, India on Saturday restricted the import of ready-made garments (RMG), processed food and other items from Bangladesh to India via land ports, effective immediately.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, issued a notification imposing land port restrictions on the import of certain goods such as Readymade garments, processed food items etc., from Bangladesh to India.

“However, such said port restriction will not apply to Bangladesh goods transiting through India but destined for Nepal and Bhutan,” the DGFT said in its notification.

According to the directive, “Import of all kinds of Ready-Made Garments from Bangladesh shall not be allowed from any land port, however, it is allowed only through Nhava Sheva and Kolkata seaports”.

Other bans are on the ”Import of fruit/fruit flavoured and carbonated drinks; processed food items; Cotton and Cotton Yarn Waste; Plastic and PVC finished goods, except pigments, dyes, plasticisers and granules that form input for own industries; and Wooden Furniture.

These items “shall not be allowed through any Land Customs Stations (LCSs)/ Integrated Check Posts (ICPs) in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram; and LCS Changrabandha and Fulbari, in West Bengal".

"The port restrictions do not apply to the import of Fish, LPG, edible oil, and crushed stone from Bangladesh,” the notification further read.

The Indian move came after the Bangladesh government in April banned import of yarns from India to the country via land ports through a notification from the National Board of Revenue (NBR).

Earlier, India terminated the trans-shipment facility for Bangladesh, which allowed the latter to export its products to other countries through Indian seaports and airports.

India is Bangladesh's second-largest trading partner after China. In the fiscal 2022-23, Bangladesh-India trade amounted to around $16 billion.

Bangladesh imported goods worth about $14 billion, while its exports to India stood at $2 billion, as per industry data.

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