Bangladesh and India today launched bilateral trade through Indian rupee (INR) to reduce over reliance on dollar, cut cost and time in the growing trade between the two nations. The inaugural ceremony was jointly organised by Bangladesh Bank (BB) and High Commission of India in city’s Le M,ridien hotel. Two export letters of credit from Bangladesh’s two businesses – Tamim Agro and Shahjahan Mia – involving a total of 28 million Indian rupee and two import LCs involving 12 million Indian rupee by Nita Company and Abdul Matlub Ahmad were handed over by four participating banks – Sonali Bank, Eastern Bank of Bangladesh and India’s State Bank of India and ICIC Bank- at the event. BB Governor Abdur Rouf Talukder attended the event as the chief guest while Senior Secretary of the Commerce Ministry Tapan Kanti Ghosh, Indian high commissioner in Dhaka Pranay Verma and Federation of Bangladesh Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FBCCI) President Jashim Uddin, among others, were present. In his speech, Adbur Rouf Talukder said India and Bangladesh have witnessed a significant expansion in bilateral trade over the years. “The trade position between India and Bangladesh has seen remarkable growth, with both countries benefiting from their economic cooperation,” he added. He informed that transaction costs during trade with India will reduce with the introduction of the taka-rupee dual currency card. “Dual currency cards are almost ready. It will be launched from September,” he added. He also said, “I met the Governor of the Reserve Bank of India, Shaktikanta Das in Bangalore. I proposed two things to him. One of them is to trade in rupee.”  “There is also a mental game involved in trading in rupees. When Indians will buy goods in their own currency, they will consider it as their own. I think it will increase our trade,” he added. Pranay Verma said today’s event marks the beginning of a new chapter in economic and commercial partnership of the two countries. “With growing determination and willingness, both sides, despite the odds presented by global economic situation, have moved forward to add new momentum to our economic ties. We faced the challenge presented by the Covid pandemic, and emerged stronger from it. The current global headwinds that are affecting economies across the world, present yet another challenge. And it is very heartening, and a symbol of the resilience of our bilateral partnership, that we are yet again adapting and leveraging opportunities to take our relationship and our economies forward through this innovative arrangement. This is also a reflection of our commitment to shared growth and shared prosperity,” he added. He said, “This mechanism is a response to a long-standing demand of local businesses, and in my view, it has tremendous potential to further enhance our bilateral trade in the longer-term. This, along with the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), for which we are going to start negotiations soon, will hopefully make our bilateral trade more robust and take it on a faster growth trajectory, just as Bangladesh makes the important economic graduation to become a developing country in 2026.”