India Widens Restrictions On Imports Of Jute Products From Bangladesh Via Land

India has expanded its restrictions on Bangladeshi imports, with certain jute products and ropes now prohibited through all land routes with immediate effect.

"Jute imports from Bangladesh shall not be allowed from any land port on the India-Bangladesh border. However, it is allowed only through the Nhava Sheva Seaport," a notification from Directorate General of Foreign Trade read.

The current notification restricts imports of leached and unbleached woven fabrics of jute, twine, rope and sacks of jute.

India has been ramping up pressure on Bangladesh over the past few months. In April, India withdrew the transhipment facility it had granted to Bangladesh for exporting various items to the Middle East, Europe and various other countries except Nepal and Bhutan.

In May, restrictions were placed on imports of ready-made garments and processed food items and in June, the same were imposed on certain jute products and woven fabrics from Bangladesh.

These measures were announced against the backdrop of the controversial statements made by the head of Bangladesh's interim government, Muhammad Yunus, in China.

In March this year, Yunus, while speaking in China, urged Beijing to establish an economic foothold in Bangladesh by leveraging its strategic position as the "only guardian of the ocean" in the region. "The seven states of India, the eastern part of India, are called the Seven Sisters. They are a landlocked region of India. They have no way to reach out to the ocean," he had said.