New Delhi: Japan on Friday formally lifted the ban on import of Indian mangoes, providing market access to the fruits after two decades.
"Japan has formally lifted the ban on import of Indian mangoes in Japan on the request by the Indian side, after confirming that there is no risk of infiltration of diseases and pests through previous scientific and technical examinations, and also getting acceptance through procedures like public hearing and public comment," the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries told the Indian government in a communication.
Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Kamal Nath hailed the decision as a major step forward in securing access to an important market for a major Indian agricultural product.
The lifting of the ban comes in the wake of Mr Nath's visit to Japan last week and his persistently pursuing the matter with the Japanese authorities since 2004.
Mr Nath first took up the issue of market access for Indian mangoes with Japanese Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Mr Nakagawa in August 2004, and subsequently again during his visit to Tokyo in 2005, when he invited Japanese quarantine authorities to visit India for on-site tests and inspections.
A Japanese technical team visited India earlier this year. The team was satisfied with the results and agreed to move ahead with the process to lift the ban, thus setting the stage for lifting the 20-year-old ban.
The mango varieties that will now be imported by Japan would be Alphonso, Banganapalli, Kesar, Langra, Chausa and Malika which are grown in pre-identified areas of Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, according to the communication from Japan.
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