Is this another Sardarji Joke? - The irony of India's offer to export rice to BD and playing a good man
It is outrageous to observe that India would play foul even with trade.
There is no question that Bangladesh is going through crisis - from political, to economical, to social and now natural calamities. The minimum that Bangladesh can expect from its neighbors is to be a responsible player, if not playing fair. And that applies to India much more than any other players in the region, since we share a long border. Our problem is there problem and their problem is ours. We don't get to choose our mutual problems - which is the fact when two countries share a common border.
However, India has been showing its incapacity to play responsible, let alone fair.
We wrote once about India offer to export electricity from the west side of Bangladesh, while they are trying to overplay our energy need by not allowing Myanmar to export its gas to us. Rather, India is asking Bangladesh for a pipeline that runs through Bangladesh. So, in short, India wants to bring gas from Myanmar to Western part of India through Bangladesh and then export to power to Dhaka? How about taking those gas to the seven sisters state on the eastern side and use that energy for development of that part of India (which solves many of the problems of people of those states) and if you have some extra, Bangladesh will be happy to buy electricity from India. Or if the centre in India is so biased against the seven sisters states, let us import the gas to Bangladeshi grid. We pay for them. If Indian companies holds share of those Myanmar companies, India gets a the price. It does make sense. But the Sardarji joke will be when they want to take the gas through us and then produce the electricity and then sell it to us. How the economics does works here? The more weird part is that India is not only stopping the seven sisters states to export things to Bangladesh, but it is stopping Nepal to export hydro-electric power to us, too. Bangladesh government should raise a fund to invest in Nepal's hydro-electric power plants, just like it is planning to invest in Myanmar in power and agriculture related industries.
The latest item on the list of jokes is rice export.
India has been trying to say that they are having trouble with their own market, so they ordered to stop rice export to Bangladesh. However, the perception in Bangladesh is different - everybody knows what that is. Now, Sardarji's envoy comes to visit the cyclone affected areas and offer to export 5 lacs tons of rice. Wow! Isn't it so great of India? That's what they are trying to engineer - at the cost of fair market practice - at the cost of goodwill. You do not engineer a "WOW" while you are a responsible partner.
We know what you are thinking - you are probably inclined to say that we are just usual skeptics who see foul play in India's actions and Pakistan's action. Well, quiet not. These two regional foul players are irresponsible to their own people - it has been proven again and again. If we list things, your days will be over while reading that list. Rather, look at the latest example.
Both India and Pakistan is competing between them to export rice to Iran! EXPORT? Are you sure that it's not IMPORT? Because, they are supposedly having trouble with rice and other cereal products so they stopped selling rice to Bangladesh. Well, you should see for yourself. Following are three headlines from three different countries, published within last two days. For details, look at the bottom of the article:
"India gains as Pakistan loses Iranian rice market"
"Pak loses Iran rice market, India gains ground"
"Pakistan losing Iranian rice market to India"
Indians now days have learned to manipulate information well. But this cat couldn't be kept within. Read the following three items.
A note to notice that Pakis are also guilty. But nobody expect them to be responsible players - the world knows that. But the world is coming to realize the true Indian face day by day.
Actually, we should not be surprised. Any nation who tries to build weapons of destruction while they keep their own people unfed, they can not be responsible players. The earlier people of those nations realize that, the better.
Coming back to the topic of today, so when you read this three items and take a note of the show that India is trying to project by being the good man, what do you say?
Is this the real India? Or is it just the case that the worse of India is controlling their policy now days. Certainly, every nation has different forces within. We have our bad elements too.
The real issue is to recognize what is real and what is not. The current forces in power in India are not the force that the people should WOW. If not, then which ones? The BJP? They are not either. Then whom? Well, that is for Indians to find out. As far as policies are concerned in Dhaka, it should take stock of the realities. There might be some who would suggest considering going to arbitration with world trade bodies, WTO or UN, etc. Our bad elements may suggest more extreme things. But what we would like to emphasize that we should realize that we do not get to pick our neighbor, as we get to pick our friends. Now, if a neighbor is a friend that's good. But if not, what can you do? Just be a responsible neighbor and hope that they will learn behave. In addition, we should also make policies that would embolden the friendlier forces within their society. Or rather correctly, hope that better elements of their society will be empowered so that the evil will not rule in policymaking, people will force them to behave. In the meantime, Dhaka should make sure that it makes attempt to include the bordering Indian states within its policy framework when considering economic policies. Because, in the long run, we live in a single market. As we grow stronger, we should make sure our neighbors gets a good share too. That's the responsible thing to do. If the state is not friendly, make immigration policies and labour laws in a way that helps the people in the neighboring regions.
If you thought some of the ideas are worth of your reading time, please forward it to others. If you have an ear to the columnists in regular traditional media, please forward it to them. If you have an ear to the journalists and news editors of the electronic media, discuss it with them. Hope they would look at the suggestions and give due diligence.
Thanks for your time,
Innovation Line
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Note: This is a freelance column, published mainly in different internet based forums. This column is open for contribution by the members of new generation, sometimes referred to as Gen 71. If you identify yourself as someone from that age-group and want to contribute to this column, please feel free to contact. Thanks to the group moderator for publishing the article.
We have not seen the Liberation War, but we know if we can free the country from corruption first, we will eventually get to other dreams soon. Because of corruption, we could not even get into information highway for years, let alone other dreams!
This is the kind of article for which we started this column. Because of ongoing mess, a gift from our older generation, we often get diverted. Now that it seems some sanity is returning in Bangladesh, we would try to go back to our original plan.
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Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/Markets/Commodities/India_gains_as_Pakistan_loses_Iranian_rice_market/articleshow/2586047.cms
India gains as Pakistan loses Iranian rice market
30 Nov, 2007, 2117 hrs IST, IANS
KARACHI: Pakistani rice exporters are up in arms against the government, as India has emerged as the preferred exporter of the commodity to Iran due to heavy tariff on imports through land routes.
Pakistani exporters of the cash crop are blaming Islamabad's lack of coordination, weak foreign policy and apathy of their apex body, the Rice Exporters' Association of Pakistan, for the predicament.
Three years back, India was just a blip on the Iranian rice import map, with just 60,000 tonnes. But in 2006-07, imports from the South Asian neighbour jumped to around 225,000 tonnes, the exporters said.
According to The News, what has left exporters even more worried is that in recent months there has also been a drastic drop of exports to Europe, Russia, Middle East and Saudi Arabia.
India has been the major gainer from this.
Pakistani rice exporters want their government to take up the matter with Tehran, which has imposed heavy tariffs on commodities exported from Pakistan overland.
India exports rice to Tehran through the sea route.
For 2007-08, India has already secured contracts for shipping around 150,000 tonnes.
Pakistani exporters estimate the total exports above the 300,000 tonnes figure, a big landmark for India.
Indian exporters are selling Pusa-1121 variety, a non-basmati long grain aromatic rice, to Iran.
Source: http://www.commodityonline.com/news/topstory/newsdetails.php?id=3945
Pak loses Iran rice market, India gains ground
Commodity Online
2007-12-01 13:30:00
NEW DELHI: India has made big strides in rice exports to Iran and this has caused major worries for the Pakistani exporters.
The main reason for India's gain is Iran's decision to impose heavy tariffs on imports from Pakistan through land route.
Moreover Pakistani exporters feel that their government is doing precious little to solve the problem.
All put together, India has emerged as the preferred exporter of the commodity to Iran.
Pakistani exporters of the cash crop are blaming Islamabad's lack of coordination, weak foreign policy and apathy of their apex body, the Rice Exporters' Association of Pakistan, for the predicament.
Three years back, India was exporting just 60,000 tonnes to Iran. But in 2006-07, rice exports from India to Iran jumped to around 225,000 tonnes.
The Pakistani exporters are more worried because in recent months there has also been a drastic drop of exports to Europe, Russia, Middle East and Saudi Arabia. India has been the major gainer from this.
Pakistani rice exporters want their government to take up the matter with Tehran, which has imposed heavy tariffs on commodities exported from Pakistan through land routes.
India exports rice to Tehran through sea route. For 2007-08, India has already secured contracts for shipping around 150,000 tonnes.
Indian exporters are selling Pusa-1121 variety, a non-basmati long grain aromatic rice, to Iran.
Source: http://www.thenews.com.pk/print1.asp?id=83494
Pakistan losing Iranian rice market to India
By By Masood Anwar
11/30/2007
KARACHI: Pakistani exporters bemoan that they are gradually loosing all international markets for the only exportable cash crop - rice, due to lack of coordination, weak foreign policy and poor performance of the ministry of commerce as well as apathy of their representative body - Rice Exporters' Association of Pakistan.
A drastic drop of exports to Europe, Russia, Middle East and Saudi Arabia was recorded for several reasons but now a traditional buyer of Pakistani rice Iran is caught by arch rival of Pakistan - India successfully.
On the name of crackdown against the illegal trade, the Iranian government has imposed heavy tariffs recently that made legal shipments of Pakistani rice through land routes expensive as compared to the Indian imports through sea.
This provided a big vacuum for the Indian grain traders to fill and now they are gaining milestones on this front. Just three year before, Indian name was not prominent over the Iranian rice import map. During 2006-07, the Indians estimated an export of rice just at the tune of 60,000 tonnes but they successfully exported around 225,000 tonnes.
Indians are not dispatching the consignments to Iran directly but they are using their offices in Dubai to grab the new Iranian market. For the year 2007-08, Indians have already made contracts for the shipping around 150,000 tonnes and they estimated the total exports above the figure of 300,000 tonnes, a big landmark for Indians.
Indian exporters are selling Pusa - 1121 variety, a non-basmati long grain aromatic variety to Iran. Though Pusa - 1121 is technically non-basmati variety but it has aroma, good taste and 30 per cent more elongation as compared to the basmati rice that gave it a good reception in Iran, sources said quoting Indian exporters.
On the other hand, Pakistani exporters working with Iran claimed that sanctions imposed by the Iranians are a tactic of the Iranian government to promote the illegal trade in the area. There are war clouds roaming over Iran and they are trying to pile up grain stocks as much as possible within their limited resources, Haji Fojan, the biggest rice exporter for Iran based in Quetta told The News.
He exported rice worth of five million dollars two years ago but has no hope to get big orders from Iran this year. "The Iranian government is trying to curb the official trade with Pakistan," he said and alleging that it was deliberately promoting informal trade. In the informal trade, the Iranian traders either pay in barter or in the Iranian or Pakistani currency thus they are saving their foreign exchange in terms of dollars or Euros, he said.
That is why, the Iranian government forced the Pakistani government to increase the in and out points at Pak-Iran border from one to eight.
"It is not right that rice is not going to Iran. You can see several trucks loaded with rice sacks moving towards Iranian boarder everyday but a not a single consignment crosses the border legally," he claimed. By increasing the border openings from one to eight, illegal trade is very much easy that is in the benefit of Iran but not for Pakistan, Haji Fojan said.
Illegal trade to Iran and Afghanistan is also a major cause of price hike, another rice exporter Shamsul Islam Khan said. Due to the illegal trade, no one can quantify the availability of stock for local consumption as well as for the stocks, he said.
The government is well aware of the entire story of eliminating the Pakistani rice from the international market and filling the gap by the Indian archrivals but surprisingly no move was initiated to cope with the situation, Zahid Khawaja, a leading rice exporter for Europe commented while narrating the episode.
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