Amritsar dry fruit traders upset over partial resumption of Afghanistan banking system

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, July 12

Local dry fruit traders are perturbed over the partial resumption of the banking system of Afghanistan since the Taliban took over. Reason: they have to make payments of the dry fruit imported through the Gulf countries.

Afghanistan International Bank, the only bank with international transfer to all countries, has not yet resumed its services. International transactions had come to a standstill since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.

“It was only a fortnight ago that Ghazanfar Bank in Kabul commenced accepting international funds,” said BK Bajaj, an importer of Afghan dry fruit. He said his counterparts in Afghanistan asked him to send some payments through Ghazanfar Bank. While a majority of the payments continue to be routed through the Gulf countries as directed by the Afghan dry fruit exporters.

India imports around 500 million US dollar worth of dry fruit from Afghanistan every year. A good amount of it is imported through the Integrated Check Post (ICP). The Indian importers import nearly 40 kinds of dry fruit, medicinal herbs and seeds. The share of Afghanistan originated dry fruit in the Indian dry fruit market is just 10 per cent with the US being the biggest supplier followed by Australia, Iran, Turkey and other countries.

Since the Taliban took over by toppling the Ashraf Ghani government, the banking system got completely paralysed. Initially for some time, Afghan dry fruit suppliers had supplied dry fruit to their good old clientele here on credit, but soon they provided alternate account numbers in the Gulf countries. It was only a month ago that the banking services started opening again, but according to an importer the transaction was partial.

Once a thriving dry port with an annual turnover between Rs 4,000 cr and Rs 5,000 cr, now the import from Afghanistan was the only source of earning for the ICP.

Tumultuous bilateral relations between India and Pakistan are reflected in the trade taking place at the ICP at Attari. The Indian Government imposed 200 per cent duty on import of Pakistani goods following the Pulwama terrorist attack that had killed about 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel in February 2019.

The Pakistan government had imposed a complete ban on import and export with India after the latter stripped Jammu and Kashmir of special status by revoking Article 370 and bifurcating it into two denominations in August 2019. It had brought the only import of rock salt from Pakistan to an end.

Kabul’s central bank yet to resume services

• Afghanistan International Bank, the only bank with international transfer to all countries, has not yet resumed its services
• International transactions had come to a standstill since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021
• India imports dry fruit worth $500 million from Afghanistan every year. A good amount of it is imported through the Integrated Check Post
• Indians import nearly 40 kinds of dry fruit, medicinal herbs and seeds

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