Tripura traders happy as Bangladesh opens Chittagong port for business

Agartala, Feb 15 (ANI): After Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced the opening of Chittagong and Mongla ports to India for trade, the business community in Tripura has expressed their over the news and look forward to boosting trade relations with their neighbour.

Goods are ferried to Bangladesh through trucks and lorries.from Akhaura land custom station in Tripura.India and Bangladesh are constructing a rail link connecting Agartala to Akhaura that will provide better connectivity with Chittagong port in Bangladesh.

During her recent visit to India, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina announced that Chittagong and Mongla port would be opened to India for trade.

This would benefit the traders and the business community of Tripura as it will attract investments, increase foreign exchange, enhance infrastructure and increase trade volumes making Tripura the gateway for Southeast Asia.

"This is a great move that will benefit the traders a lot. They will save a lot of time and will increase profits by 40 percent," said Manish Biswas, secretary, Agartala Exporter Importer Association.

The industry and Commerce Minister Jiten Choudhary said the opening of Chittagong port will not only benefit Tripura but also open up the road for the entire Northeastern region helping in industry growth in the region.

Currently trade between India and Bangladesh is about US five billion dollars.

Both countries are keen on boosting it and have signed various agreements.

The Sheikh Hasina government is looking to get electricity from the Northeast to meet the rising demand in Bangladesh and initiate other joint venture hydel power projects with India.

"I think the present business relationship between Bangladesh and India is growing quite significantly for three reasons. In recent times, India and Bangladesh have been opening up their economies. Number two is that the political environment between the two countries has also improved quite significantly. Third, there is a growing recognition in Bangladesh that India will be a major power in the 21st century and Bangladesh should take advantage of that," said Mustafizur Rahman, Executive Director, Centre For Policy Dialogue, Bangladesh. (ANI)