India has imposed new restrictions on the imports of key goods from Bangladesh, including garments and agro-processed food, through land ports, a move expected to disrupt trade flows and add logistical hurdles for exporters.
According to a notification issued today by India's Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), garments, the single largest Bangladeshi export to India, will only be permitted entry through two sea ports: Kolkata and Nhava Sheva near Mumbai. The new rules take immediate effect.
The notification also bars imports of fruits, carbonated and fruit-flavoured drinks, processed food, cotton and cotton yarn waste, PVC and plastic products, and wooden furniture via land ports in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura, and Mizoram, as well as Phulbari and Changrabandha in West Bengal.
However, the restrictions will not apply to fish, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), edible oils, or crushed stone, the DGFT said. Nor will they affect Bangladesh's exports to Nepal and Bhutan transiting through Indian territory.
The move follows India's earlier decision in April to suspend transhipment facilities for Bangladeshi export cargo bound for third countries via Indian land borders and airports, a step that had already raised concerns about trade tightening.
India is one of Bangladesh's fastest-growing apparel markets, with garment exports valued at about $700 million annually. Of that, around 93 percent of shipments are routed through land ports, making the new restrictions especially disruptive, reports our correspondent from New Delhi.
Anwar-Ul-Alam Chowdhury (Parvez), former president of the Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA), said the restriction on garment shipments through land ports will adversely affect Bangladesh's apparel exports to India.
"This is essentially a non-tariff barrier on our garment exports," he said. "Now that shipments must go through sea ports, lead times will increase significantly, which in turn will raise costs for Indian importers sourcing from Bangladesh.