India Hosts 8th Joint Committee Meeting on ASEAN-India Trade Agreement

14 Apr 2025 CW Team

The committee's primary objective was to advance the on-going review of the AITIGA, aiming to modernize the agreement to be more effective, user-friendly, and conducive to trade. Five out of eight Sub-Committees (SCs) under the AITIGA JC also conducted hybrid meetings on the margins of the 8th AITIGA JC. Out of which, four SCs, namely Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation (SC-CPTF); Sub-Committee on Economic & Technical cooperation (SC-ETC); Sub-Committee on National Treatment and Market Access (SC-NTMA); and Sub-Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SC-SPS) met in New Delhi, India, while the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin (SC-ROO) met in Jakarta, Indonesia, facilitating progress in textual discussions and progressing in groundwork for tariff negotiations.

ASEAN remains a pivotal trade partner for India, accounting for approximately 11 per cent of India's global trade. In the fiscal year 2023-24, bilateral trade between India and ASEAN reached $ 121 billion.

The next AITIGA JC meeting is scheduled for June 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, continuing the collaborative efforts to enhance ASEAN-India economic integration.

News source: PIB

India hosted the 8th meeting of the AITIGA Joint Committee to review the ASEAN-India Trade in Goods Agreement (AITIGA) at Vanijya Bhawan, New Delhi, from April 07 to 11, 2025. The event was conducted in a hybrid format. The meeting was co-chaired by Rajesh Agrawal, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, India and Deputy Co-Chair Dr Sugumari S Shanmugam Senior Director Ministry of Investment, Trade and Industry, Malaysia. The meeting saw participation from delegates representing ASEAN countries, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Viet Nam. The committee's primary objective was to advance the on-going review of the AITIGA, aiming to modernize the agreement to be more effective, user-friendly, and conducive to trade. Five out of eight Sub-Committees (SCs) under the AITIGA JC also conducted hybrid meetings on the margins of the 8th AITIGA JC. Out of which, four SCs, namely Sub-Committee on Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation (SC-CPTF); Sub-Committee on Economic & Technical cooperation (SC-ETC); Sub-Committee on National Treatment and Market Access (SC-NTMA); and Sub-Committee on Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SC-SPS) met in New Delhi, India, while the Sub-Committee on Rules of Origin (SC-ROO) met in Jakarta, Indonesia, facilitating progress in textual discussions and progressing in groundwork for tariff negotiations. ASEAN remains a pivotal trade partner for India, accounting for approximately 11 per cent of India's global trade. In the fiscal year 2023-24, bilateral trade between India and ASEAN reached $ 121 billion. The next AITIGA JC meeting is scheduled for June 2025 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, continuing the collaborative efforts to enhance ASEAN-India economic integration. News source: PIB

Infrastructure Energy

17 Sep 2025

Adani Power To Build 2,400 MW Plant in Bihar

Adani Power on Saturday (September 13, 2025) announced plans to set up a 2,400 MW ultra super-critical power plant in Bihar at an investment of $3 billion (around Rs 26.48 billion).The company has signed a 25-year Power Supply Agreement (PSA) with Bihar State Power Generation Company Ltd (BSPGCL) to supply electricity from the project, which will be located at Pirpainti in Bhagalpur district.The PSA follows a Letter of Award issued by BSPGCL to Adani Power on behalf of North Bihar Power Distribution Company Ltd (NBPDCL) and South Bihar Power Distribution Company Ltd (SBPDCL) in August. Adani P..

Infrastructure Energy

17 Sep 2025

NTPC Plans Nuclear Power Projects Via JV and Standalone Routes

Power major NTPC is planning to develop nuclear power projects both through joint ventures and on a standalone basis, CMD Gurdeep Singh has said.The company is collaborating with nuclear technology providers and state governments to explore individual nuclear projects, Singh added.Currently, the NTPC Group has an installed capacity of 82,926 MW across 53 NTPC-owned stations and 53 joint venture or subsidiary stations, drawing power from coal, liquid fuel, hydro, and solar sources.In December 2024, Singh had announced NTPC’s ambitious plan to enter the nuclear energy sector, a move expected t..

Infrastructure Transport

17 Sep 2025

RVNL Wins $21.6 Million Bhopal Division Traction Substation

Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) has been declared the lowest bidder for a $21.6 million traction substation contract awarded by the West Central Railway.The project covers the design, modification, supply, erection, testing, and commissioning of a 220/132kV/2×25kV Scott-connected traction substation, switching posts, Auto-Transformer installations, and Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) systems in the Bina–RTA section of the Bhopal Division. The execution period is set at 540 days.In a regulatory filing, RVNL stated that the order was secured in the ordinary course of business and doe..