Bangladesh's exports of jute and jute goods to India are in jeopardy after the neighbouring country revoked the licences of its importers and asked them to apply for new permits.

As a result, hundreds of India-bound trucks loaded with jute and jute-made products were left stranded at different ports including Benapole in the last couple of days, according to our correspondent and Bangladesh Jute Association or BJA.

India is the largest importer of raw jute and jute goods produced in Bangladesh, but the exports came to a standstill after the Office of the Jute Commissioner of India issued a notice on Tuesday. 

It said it has cancelled earlier registrations of raw jute and jute products importers, so they have to sign up their units afresh.

The traders to whom they sell the imported jute and jute products and the end users will also have to register their units, it said.

Photo: Star/File

The notice also said the importers have to apply for a no-objection certificate for every consignment.  When applying for the NOC, the importer has to provide details of the buyer of the imported consignment.

If the importer is not the end user, all the stakeholders starting from the buyer through to the final user will have to register their units, according to the notice.

Although the notice did not mention names of any specific country, it effectively suspended imports of Bangladeshi raw jute and jute products.

The suspension will now create a negative impact on the economy and cause irreparable losses to jute farmers, the BJA said in a statement yesterday.

The ongoing volatility in the raw jute and jute goods market is a blow to jute farmers and businessmen, the BJA said.

The association urged the government to take quick steps so that the current situation does not affect the export of raw jute and jute products.

The situation may render many factories closed and thousands of workers jobless, it said.

Harunur Rashid, a jute exporter in Bangladesh, said it is impossible to get an NOC for each consignment by the Indian importers.

India does not allow imported jute or jute yarn to be used in producing jute sacking.

But all Indian jute millers produce jute sacking with imported jute from Bangladesh, he said. 

Abdul Jalil, deputy director of Benapole land port, said half of the jute and jute goods exports to India are shipped through the port, but it has remained suspended since Thursday.

Bangladesh exports 20 to 30 lakh bales of jute to India through the Benapole port a year.

Indian importers have given at least Tk 117 crore in advance to Bangladeshi's jute mill owners, according to Kolkata-based Jute Products Importers Association.

Similarly, Bangladeshi mill owners have exported goods worth Tk 58 crore on credit. There are orders for jute goods worth Tk 470 crore.

Bangladesh, which is the largest producer and exporter of jute in the world, exported raw jute and jute goods worth $868 million last fiscal year, according to the Export Promotion Bureau. Of them, India imported $100 million.