India and Iran to form a joint committee for agricultural cooperation

The trade between Iran and India reached $510 million in the first quarter of this year

Agricultural officials of Iran and India have agreed to form a joint committee for agricultural cooperation between the two countries within the next three months, According to the Iran media.

The agreement was signed in a meeting between Mohammad Mehdi Borumandi Iran’s Deputy Agriculture Minister and Manoj Ahuja Secretary of India’s Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Ministry in New Delhi.

Borumandi, recently visited New Delhi to hold talks on the agricultural cooperation between Iran and India and met with his Indian counterpart to review the latest status of bilateral cooperation in the field of agriculture.

The officials also agreed to hold the first joint working group on agricultural cooperation between the two countries in the near future.

In the meeting, Borumandi stressed Iran’s readiness for cooperation in various fields including horticultural products, medicinal plants, combating plant pests, agricultural technologies, exchange of professors and experts, and collaboration between research institutions of the two countries.

He stressed removing tariff barriers on agricultural trade as necessary for the future expansion of relations.

Manoj Ahuja announced that the ban on the exports of kiwi to India, which had been temporarily prohibited since last year due to quarantine considerations, has been lifted.

The trade between Iran and India reached $510 million in the first quarter of this year, according to the data released by India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

According to the report, agricultural products, especially rice, had the largest share in India’s exports to Iran. Rice accounted for 63 per cent of the total volume of exports, while fruits with $15 million, and tea with $10 million ranked second and third.

The trade between Iran and India reached