The export of buffalo meat from India to Russia has commenced while export of other milk products is expected to begin soon, the government said today.
The issue was discussed during the bilateral meeting between President Pranab Mukherjee and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said today.
"Bovine meat export to Russia has commenced while export of milk products from India will begin soon," he said at a press conference here.
The decision to export buffalo meat to Russia bears significance as cow slaughter is banned in Maharashtra but there is no restriction on export of buffalo meat.
Indian Ambassador to Russia P S Raghavan said that Russia essentially approved certain Indian companies to export buffalo meat to Russia and this was part of the broader agreement for export of agri products from India.
Mukherjee, who is in Russia on a five-day visit, also discussed entire areas of bilateral relations, including defence cooperation, civil nuclear cooperation, trade and investment.
The Foreign Secretary said that Russian defence companies have shown interests in investing in India under the 'Make in India' programme.
He said during the bilateral meeting, both the leaders discussed about the Russian built Kudankulam nuclear project, where "progress is satisfactory".
Mukherjee witnessed the victory day celebrations of Russia and Putin thanked him for attending the event.
"We are here to recognise Russia's contribution to World War II and convey that we are with you," Jaishankar said.
The Foreign Secretary said during Putin's visit to India in December 2014, three joint working groups were set up and one of them has already become operational while the other two will be operational soon.
He said Putin and Mukherjee also discussed about cooperation in aerospace, petrochemicals and other trade.
"We hope that trade between the two countries will soon be USD 30 billion and investment will be USD 15 billion," he said.
Jaishankar added that a regulatory framework has been set up for diamond exports while Russia has also shown interests in investments in Indian infrastructure projects and smart city projects.
