The Tripura Chambers of Commerce and Industries (TCCI) has expressed serious concern over the ‘massive’ bilateral trade imbalance through Akhaura Integrated Check Post (ICP).
The TCCI has on Saturday decided to seek State Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb’s intervention in all the ‘tough barriers’ imposed by the Bangladesh government.
The trade body has alleged that the bilateral trade through Akhaura Integrated Check Post only benefits Bangladesh with the Indian traders from Tripura get a raw deal.
Lately, it has crossed all previous records with Bangladesh exporting various items amounting to Rs 350 crore to Tripura and importing goods only worth Rs 100 crore during the current fiscal year, the trade body has said.
To remove stringent trade barriers on exporting different items, TCCI has been knocking all the doors for the past few years but it has yielded no positive result so far.
TCCI’s president M L Debnath told media persons in Agartala on Saturday that the trade body desires to eradicate trade barriers on 27 items.
The 27 items include rubber made products, bamboo made items, tea, readymade garment, automobile machineries, electric goods, bicycles, auto rickshaws, broom grass, CNG equipment, salt, bitumen and cosmetics.
Debnath also added that while Delhi is charging less amount of customs duty on Bangladeshi items to promote bilateral trade, Bangladesh government is collecting 40 to 100 per cent custom duty on Indian products.
