China
Opens Market for Non-Basmati Rice from India in Modi Visit
The two Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) were signed after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held detailed
discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping on bilateral and global issues which
will add further vigour to the India-China friendship
after their informal summit in Wuhan.
Qingdao: In a significant move,
China on 9 June agreed to provide India hydrological data of the Brahmaputra River
in flood season, months after Beijing stopped the practice, crucial to predict floods.
The two countries also
signed an agreement under which China has agreed to import non-Basmati rice from
India which is likely to bridge the ballooning trade deficit to a certain extent.
The two Memorandums of
Understanding (MoUs) were signed after Prime Minister
Narendra Modi held detailed discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping on bilateral
and global issues which will add further vigour to the
India-China friendship after their informal summit in Wuhan.
Modi arrived in the picturesque
coastal city of China’s Shandong province on a two-day visit to attend the annual
summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
Last year, China had stopped
sharing data soon after the 73-day long stand-off between Indian and Chinese troops
at Dokalam over Chinese military’s plans to build a road
close to India’s Chicken Neck corridor connecting North-Eastern states.
The first MoU was inked between China’s Ministry of Water Resources and
India’s Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation upon
provision of hydrological information of the Brahmaputra river
in flood season by China to India.
The agreement enables China
to provide hydrological data in flood season from May 15 to October 15 every year.
It also enables the Chinese side to provide hydrological data if water level exceeds
mutually agreed level during non-flood season.
China, an upstream country,
shares the scientific study of the movement, distribution and quality of water data
for the river.
Originating from Tibet,
the Brahmaputra is one of the major rivers in China. From Tibet it flows down to
India and later enters Bangladesh where it joins the Ganga.
The second MoU was signed between China’s General Administration of Customs
and India’s Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Farmers Welfare on Phytosanitary requirements for exporting rice from India to
China, one of the world’s biggest rice markets.
The 2006 Protocol on Phytosanitary Requirements for Exporting Rice from India to
China has been amended to include the export of non-Basmati varieties of rice from
India.
At present, India can only
export Basmati rice to China.
Sources said the pact on
non-Basmati rice may help in addressing India’s concerns over widening trade deficit
which has been in China’s favour.
China has been promising
to address the issue of trade deficit with India which has been seeking a greater
market access for its goods and services in China.
Trade deficit with China
stood at USD 36.73 billion during April-October this fiscal.
India’s trade deficit with
China has marginally dipped to USD 51 billion in 2016-17 from USD 52.69 billion
in the previous fiscal