OTTAWA - India's High Commissioner to Canada, Dinesh K. Patnaik, says a trade deal between Canada and India is nearly finished and should be reached well before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits Canada in December. 'We have got most of it worked out. A few nicks here and there. Some legal scrubbing. But I'm extremely confident that we will be able to achieve (a deal) much before the prime minister's visit,' Patnaik said in an exclusive interview with CTV's Question Period, which aired on Sunday.
Source: CTV News / CTV Question Period, Oct 25
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed earlier this month that Modi will visit Canada on December 11 and 12, ahead of the G20 Leaders' Summit in Miami, CTV reported. Last November, Carney and Modi committed to reviving trade negotiations with the goal of a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), after years of strained relations between the two countries.
Source: CTV News via BNN Bloomberg, Oct 25
The negotiating calendar backs the envoy's optimism, trade reporting noted: Canada and India completed their fifth round of CEPA talks in Ottawa in early October, and International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu and India's Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal have met repeatedly - Ottawa said their October meeting was their ninth since May 2025. The next round is scheduled for November 9 in New Delhi.
Source: Hashtag Investing / NewsBee trade reporting, Oct 25
What is solid
- Patnaik publicly said on CTV on Sunday that most of the deal is worked out and he is extremely confident it will be achieved well before Modi's December visit (CTV)
- Modi's Canada visit is set for December 11-12, confirmed by Carney earlier this month (CTV)
- Both leaders committed last November to reviving negotiations toward a CEPA, with a goal of sharply expanding trade by 2030
What is only claimed
- November is the envoy's stated expectation, not a confirmed signing date - the deal has not been signed, outstanding issues remain, and both governments' formal target has been to conclude negotiations by the end of 2026
Why it matters for the diaspora
A signed CEPA would be one of India's more consequential recent trade deals, widening access to Canadian energy, critical minerals and technology at a time when India is diversifying supply chains - and it would land directly on the lives of Canada's large Punjabi and Indian diaspora, whose families, students and businesses move between the two countries. A Canadian trade mission to India in October brought nearly 300 business delegates and produced 34 commercial agreements worth close to C$300 million - yaani about 30 crore Canadian dollars - across sectors including aerospace, clean technology, energy and agri-food, according to the Canadian government.