KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 11 (Bernama) -- India has not retaliated againstMalaysia's palm oil export over the issue of the RM14.5 billion doubletracking rail project.

"At the present moment, there is no retaliation," Minister of PrimaryIndustries, Datuk Seri Dr Lim Keng Yaik told a press conference afterofficiating the National Seminar "Towards Malaysian Furniture Design 2003"here Thursday.

He said the Malaysia Palm Oil Promotion Council was monitoring the marketand the feedback had been given to him.

India's Ircon International Limited was originally supposed to be awardeda contract for part of the rail project, but the contract was subsequentlyawarded to the Malaysia Mining Corporation-Gamuda consortium.

On Dec 3, reports had said that Ircon might be appointed a nominatedsub-contractor to the project.

Today, a report in the local media quoted a senior government official assaying that the project had been postponed.

-- BERNAMA