Photo : Collected
Export and import trade between India and Bangladesh via the Benapole land port resumed on Monday after the holidays for Eid-ul-Fitr and Bengali New Year.
Sajedur Rahman, general secretary of the Benapole C&F Staff Association, said export and import activities through the port resumed on Monday morning. Earlier, trade with neighbouring India through the port remained suspended between April 10 and 14 on the occasions of Eid-ul-Fitr and Bengali New Year.
Kamruzzaman Biswas, officer-in-charge of Benapole Check Post Immigration Police, said the movement of passengers between the two countries remained normal despite the suspension of trade for the holidays.
Benapole Port Director Rezaul Karim said after the end of the holidays, workers would work for extended hours at the port, if necessary, to load and unload goods. Various types of goods are exported to India through the Benapole port, including jute products, readymade garments, chemicals, acids, paper, raw materials, iron, tissue, melamine, rice bran, and mahogany fruit.
In 2023, Bangladesh and India rolled out bilateral trade in Indian rupees, which was described by the two countries’ governments as a landmark settlement. They said it would not only boost their trade volume with each other but also help them skirt the global dominance of the US dollar.
Bangladesh is India’s biggest trade partner in South Asia. Besides, India is the second biggest trade partner of Bangladesh. The bilateral trade between India and Bangladesh has steadily grown over the last decade.
In the fiscal year 2021-22, the trade volume reached $18.2 billion, compared to $10.8 billion in FY21. Exports from Bangladesh tripled over the last decade, crossing $1 billion in the financial year 2018-19.
Over the last 26 years, exports from Bangladesh to India increased at an annualised rate of 12.1 per cent, reaching $1.72 billion in 2021.
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