India, China sign MoUs on Brahmaputra river, rice export

India and China on Saturday signed two bilateral agreements here on the sidelines of Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit.

The agreements were signed post the delegation-level talks, in the presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who reached here today in the morning for the two-day summit.

First MoU was regarding Brahmaputra River and the other one on the export of rice from India to China.

China's Ministry of Water Resources and India's Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and, Ganga Rejuvenation signed the MoU under which China would provide hydrological information to India regarding the Brahmaputra River during the flood season.

The second MoU was signed between China's General Administration of Customs and India's Department of Agriculture, Cooperation and Famers Welfare. Under the agreement, the 2006 Protocol on Phytosanitary Requirements for exporting rice from India to China has been amended to include the export of non-Basmati varieties of rice from India.

After signing of the agreements, Prime Minister Modi held a meeting with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

Earlier in February, External Affairs Minister of Uzbekistan Abdulaziz Kamilov visited India as part of which both sides inked agreements in the pharmaceutical industry.

India, China, and Uzbekistan together form a part of the SCO apart from Tajikistan, Pakistan, Russia, and Kyrgyzstan.