Tripura traders asked to follow port restrictions on imports from Bangladesh: Official

Agartala: The Tripura government has asked traders, who have been operating their businesses through integrated check posts in the state, to adhere to the port restrictions imposed by the Centre on imports of certain goods, such as readymade garments, from Bangladesh, an official said on Tuesday.

During a meeting with the exporters and importers from Agartala, Dharmanagar and Sonamura, state Industries and Commerce Department Director Sailesh Kumar Yadav has instructed them to follow the port curbs on inbound shipments of a few Bangladeshi products, he said.

The meeting was held at the Agartala Integrated Check Post (ICP) on Monday.

The central government had on May 17 imposed port restrictions on the import of a few Bangladeshi goods, such as readymade garments and processed food items, in response to similar curbs placed by Dhaka on certain Indian products last month.

However, the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT), in its notification, said the port restrictions will not apply to Bangladeshi goods transiting through India but destined for Nepal and Bhutan.

"Two days after the notification, the director held a meeting with all the stakeholders at Agartala ICP. He asked them to adhere to the restriction," Land Ports Authority of India (LPAI) Manager, Agartala ICP, Debasish Nandi said.

He said the exporters and importers expressed their concern over the future of bilateral trade between the two countries.

An organisation of businessmen and traders in Tripura on Monday welcomed the Centre's decision to impose port restrictions on imports of certain goods from Bangladesh and said the national interest comes first above anything else.

Bangladeshi exporters, who send goods in substantial quantities through land ports, will be the losers in view of the Central government's move, Tripura Chamber of Trade and Business (TCTB) general secretary Rajat Paul said.

Nandi said the movement of immigrants has been reduced substantially through the Agartala ICP after the fall of the Sheikh Hasina government in Bangladesh following the unrest there.

"Before August 1, 2024, around 1,500 immigration clearances were given at Agartala ICP, but now it has come down to 150 per day," he added.