New Delhi, April 10, 2025: India has withdrawn the transshipment facility granted to Bangladesh for sending export goods to third countries, effectively cancelling Bangladesh's access to use Indian territory to export goods to Bhutan, Nepal, and Myanmar by land.
The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) announced on Tuesday that the transshipment-related order issued on June 29, 2020, has been cancelled. The order had allowed Bangladesh to use any Indian port or airport via customs stations for exporting goods to third countries.
Several Indian airports, including Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, were used for exporting Bangladeshi-made garments. The new decision may disrupt that process.
The move will also affect the export of other products to countries like Bhutan, Nepal, and Myanmar using Indian infrastructure. The transshipment facility had helped reduce both time and transportation costs.
The Indian Apparel Exporters Association (APC) had long demanded the abolition of the facility. APC Chairman Sudhir Sekhri said Bangladesh and India are rivals in textile exports, and the move will create more space for Indian exports at Indian airports.
Ajay Srivastava, head of the New Delhi-based think tank Global Trade Research Initiative, noted that under Article 5 of the 1994 General Tariffs and Trade Agreement of the WTO, all member states are obliged to ensure free transit of goods in landlocked countries.
