Trade Minister Mary Ng was scheduled to lead a group of businesses to Mumbai in the second week of October. (The Canadian Press)

Talking point: Bilateral relations have taken a turn since Ng first announced plans for the trip, during Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal’s visit to Canada in May. At the time, both policymakers said the two sides were making headway on an early-progress trade agreement, designed as a precursor to a wider deal. But earlier this month, Ottawa asked for a pause in those negotiations; neither side has said why. Canada has been trying on and off to do a trade deal with India since November 2010. Business groups in both countries have pushed their respective governments to get something signed. Last week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau met Indian counterpart Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the G20 summit, in a conversation New Delhi framed as adversarial.