As trade engagement between India and Canada gathers momentum, the Overseas Friends of India Canada – Ottawa (OFIC) has written to the Government of Canada urging it to accelerate negotiations toward concluding a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between the two long-standing trade partners.

The appeal comes as an official trade delegation from British Columbia arrives in India on January 12, 2026, marking a renewed phase of bilateral engagement. Talks on a free trade agreement have remained pending for more than a decade, though recent exchanges of ministerial and trade delegations have revived optimism around the prospects of a CEPA.

“We welcome and commend Global Affairs Canada’s recent positive re-engagement with India at this strategically important moment,” said Shiv Bhasker, President, and Hemant Shah, President and Trade Director of OFIC, in their communication.

The renewed activity follows the completion of an 11-day India visit by a trade delegation of the Canadian Hindu Chamber of Commerce, which toured Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Delhi, and Chandigarh.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney is also expected to lead a high-level delegation to India early next month. As part of a broader effort to strengthen trade ties with Asia, Carney is traveling to China this week and will visit Qatar before returning to the region for his first official visit to India.

Against this backdrop, anticipation is high among Indian industry and business leaders ahead of the arrival of the first official Canadian provincial trade delegation. Led by British Columbia Premier David Eby and Jobs Minister and Olympian Ravi Kahlon, the mission will visit Chandigarh, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru. It will highlight British Columbia’s capabilities in sustainable forestry, clean energy, and responsible mining, and is aligned with the province’s Look West industrial and economic plan.

The delegation will be in India from January 12 to January 17. During the visit, Premier Eby and Minister Kahlon are scheduled to meet government and business leaders across major commercial and technology hubs. The mission aims to promote British Columbia businesses, critical minerals, and sustainable wood products, while supporting efforts to build a more independent provincial economy and create well-paying jobs.

“With unjustified tariffs from the U.S. impacting B.C. workers and businesses, it’s more important than ever to deepen strategic relationships with international partners to attract new investment and support good-paying jobs in British Columbia,” Premier Eby said. “India is a key market for B.C. with enormous trade opportunities. This trade mission is about deepening our relationships, supporting good jobs in B.C. and strengthening our position as the economic engine of the new Canadian economy.”

As India advances toward becoming the world’s third-largest economy, the Premier is expected to underscore partnership opportunities in sustainable forestry, clean energy, and responsible mining that are uniquely available in British Columbia. India, currently the world’s third-largest energy consumer, has rising demand for clean technology and clean energy, sectors where British Columbia has established strengths.

The mission is part of the Look West: Jobs and Prosperity for B.C. and Canada strategy, which targets doubling exports to non-U.S. markets over the next decade.

“British Columbia has the highest share of exports to India of any province,” Kahlon said. “Building on our Look West plan, the trade mission to India will showcase B.C.’s strengths in clean energy, sustainable forestry, responsible mining and clean technology. By attracting investment and reducing our reliance on U.S. markets through diversified trade partnerships, we will create good jobs and prosperity for all British Columbians.”

Premier Eby reiterated that diversifying trade and investment has become more urgent in light of ongoing U.S. tariff pressures, adding that the provincial government will continue to leverage British Columbia’s strengths to expand exports and attract investment.

In 2024, British Columbia-origin goods exports to India totaled $1.3 billion. To further expand its trade base, the province launched a Trade Diversification Strategy in early 2023. British Columbia now benefits from a network of more than 50 trade and investment representatives across 14 key markets in North America, Europe, and Asia, including offices in India located in Chandigarh, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

The province operates 18 mines and two smelters and produces, or has the potential to produce, at least 19 critical minerals listed by Canada and on the U.S. 2025 draft critical minerals list, including copper, germanium, nickel, and rare-earth elements. British Columbia is also Canada’s second-largest natural gas producer and, if considered independently, would rank as the world’s 12th-largest producer. Forestry Innovation Investment, the province’s forest products market development agency, has been promoting British Columbia wood species in India under the Canadian Wood brand.

In its letter to Canadian Minister for International Trade Maninder Sidhu, OFIC said Canada and India share a deep and enduring economic relationship built on trust, mutual respect, and long-term cooperation. The organization noted Canada’s historical support for India’s development, beginning with CIDA-led initiatives in the late 1970s and extending to major collaborations such as the feasibility study for the New Mumbai Sea Port at Nhava Sheva. Canada’s engagement continued even during India’s pre-liberalization era, including the 1985–86 Canadian trade mission and the “Canada Week” trade fair in New Delhi.

Bhasker and Shah wrote that Canadian expertise continues to add value across priority sectors such as mining, agricultural storage, grains and pulses, aerospace, helicopters, and aviation maintenance, all of which align closely with India’s development priorities.

They also highlighted education as a cornerstone of bilateral ties, tracing back to Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri’s visit to Ottawa in the late 1960s and the establishment of the Shastri Indo-Canadian Institute. Since 2006, flight schools in Western Canada, including Winnipeg, have trained Indian commercial pilots now serving India’s rapidly expanding aviation sector.

“CEPA is more than a trade agreement; it is a strategic instrument to expand market access, strengthen supply-chain resilience, and secure Canada’s long-term economic presence in one of the world’s fastest-growing major economies. The Indo-Canadian business community has played a critical role in sustaining bilateral trade for decades and will continue to serve as a vital bridge and driving force in this renewed partnership,” the letter stated.

OFIC strongly recommended moving forward decisively with CEPA negotiations, reiterating its full support for concluding the agreement and its belief that it would deliver lasting economic and strategic benefits for both countries.

“OFIC stands ready and willing to assist the Government of Canada, Global Affairs Canada, and your office in any manner necessary to help make CEPA a reality,” Bhasker and Shah said in concluding the letter.

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