Bangladesh News

At least 300 trucks loaded with rice en route to Bangladesh from India have been stranded at Hili land port as India has imposed a ban on export of rice to Bangladesh, said sources at the port.

In a fax message sent on February 7, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, informed the Hili port authorities of its decision regarding the ban, the sources added.

Rice importers and exporters are outraged by the move and Indian exporters urged the Indian government to withdraw the ban by this Monday. They would otherwise take the matter to the court, said the sources.

Ashok Agarwal, president of Importers and Exporters Association of Hili Land Port, told this correspondent that the decision will have a negative impact on bilateral trades between the two countries and it will badly affect at least 50 large export and import businesses.

Meanwhile, the federal government of India asked rice mill owners in West Bengal to sell at least 50 percent of their rice to the federal government and the rest on the open market, said port sources at Hili quoting Indian rice traders.