Nepal and India Prepare to Review Trade Treaty

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Nepal and India Prepare to Review Trade Treaty

September 25: The third bilateral meeting to review Nepal-India Trade Treaty is going to begin on Thursday in New Delhi, India. A nine-member Nepali delegation led by joint secretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies Nawaraj Dhakal is scheduled to leave for India on Wednesday for negotiations. According to government officials, the meeting will focus on minimizing trade deficit with India.

The team also includes representatives from the foreign ministry, director general of the customs department, Department of Agriculture, Quarantine officer and representatives of the Nepalese Embassy in India. 

Meeting of the Council of Ministers last Tuesday approved the agenda of the negotiations. The ministry said that the main agenda of the two-day talks will be to resolve the issues bilateral trade and minimize trade deficit with India.

The issues of quarantine in the border area and other problems in the customs sector are still prevalent despite the trade treaty between the two countries. Such problems that are more conspicuous in export rather than import. The Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies  informed that the meeting will look for ways to reduce Nepal’s trade deficit by increasing export. Joint Secretary Nawaraj Dhakal said that the priority of the team is to minimize trade deficit and revise the agenda of the old treaty.

Prior to this, discussions on revision of the bilateral trade treaty between Nepal and India have already been conducted twice. The first phase of discussions was held in New Delhi in July/August 2018 and the second phase of discussions was held in Pokhara in Jan/Feb 2019.

During the meeting, Nepal will seek India’s consent to import goods from other customs points besides Birgunj. Currently, consignment from third countries through Kolkata, Visakhapatnam and Haldiya ports of India is allowed to enter Nepal only from Birgunj border.

The third phase of discussions will amend the trade agreement of 2009 and give priority to minimizing trade deficit between the two countries.

 

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