India’s new envoy to Canada says Ottawa should pivot away from pursuing a scaled-down trade deal and instead reach for a comprehensive trade and investment agreement with the world’s most populous country.

In a wide-ranging interview with The Canadian Press, Indian High Commissioner Dinesh Patnaik also said Canadian businesses should expand trade and investment ties with India now, without waiting for governments to sign a formal trade agreement.

“We are more interested in a comprehensive package than something with low ambition. We want a higher ambition,” he said in a Thursday interview.

“A trade deal is something we should not wait for. We should start getting whatever we can, the early gains.”

Canada and India have been in trade talks since 2010. Those negotiations were paused and

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