It said any food consignment prior to entering Indian market must obtain clearance from the port health officer (PHO) who issues the certificate after proper test of each item from their recognised laboratories.

But the clearance is delayed as there is hardly any lab in the northeastern India for testing the imported food items. The samples are sent to Kolkata for test which takes long time to get the certificate, the study said.

"Most of the land customs in northeastern India have no warehouse and in such cases the goods are kept in the importers' warehouses under customs supervision till the certificates are obtained. This results in huge damage and inconsistent supply of products to market," it said.

Citing another example of non-tariff barrier the MCCI study said the provision for mandatory tests to ascertain genuineness of imported leather and leather products is also hampering exports from Bangladesh.

The chamber said the Indian customs authorities insist for duty bond for each consignment of automotive batteries despite a ruling of the Kolkata High Court to allow import without anti-dumping duty.

The study also identified a few non-tariff barriers which hamper exports of various items from Bangladesh to India.

The non-tariff barriers include condition of bearing quantity, weight, date of manufacturing, maximum retail price of the goods and also name and country of the manufacturer in each individual cartons.

The metropolitan chamber also pointed out that there is also no storage facility for the exported goods on the Indian side.

The chamber said Bangladeshi trucks are not allowed to go beyond the no-man's land while Indian customs do not allow goods to be loaded on Indian trucks that enter into Bangladesh territory carrying Indian imports.

"Indian importers are discouraged to open LC by charging high bank charges and margin," the chamber observed.

The chamber said the value addition requirement is often challenged after the goods reach the Indian side, thereby refusing the duty concession.

"Such an attitude is arbitrary as the value addition certificate issued by the designated authority should be accepted without any question," said the chamber.

The MCCI said physical facilities of the Indian land ports need to be developed for increasing the trade relations between the two countries.

They identified three Indian ports, which needs development. These include Fulbari at Cooch Bihar in West Bengal, Sutarkandi in Assam and Agartala in Tripura.

The chamber also said Indian customs officials do not observe the working hours, for which clearance of consignment is delayed by several hours.