India seeks German support to lift EU ban
Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh raised the issue during the third Inter-governmental Consultations (IGC) with the German delegation held in New Delhi on Monday, an official statement said.
The 28-member European Union (EU) had in May last year banned the import of Alphonso mangoes, the king of fruits, and four vegetables from India. However, the ban on Alphonso was lifted early this year.
The Minister, the release said, told the German delegation to "provide necessary support for lifting the ban on these items for exports to EU".
The Minister said EU has banned import of eggplant (brinjal), taro plant, bitter gourd and snake gourd from India due to interception of quarantine pests.
He told the delegation that the EU ban on four vegetables continues despite an audit team of EU inspecting the export certification process and verifying the additional steps taken by India to ensure export of pest-free fruits and vegetables, the statement added.
Earlier in the day, India and Germany signed a Joint Declaration of Intent for cooperation in food safety and good agriculture practices, especially in the field of plant protection products.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between the Agriculture Skill Council of India (ASCI) and German AgriBusiness Alliance (GAA) to cooperate for jointly developing the establishment centres of competence- excellence in agriculture with an aim to provide skill development in Indian agriculture.
Germany is India's largest trading partner in the European Union and the seventh-largest foreign investor in India.
Source: dnaindia.com
