India seeks adequate policy space to protect its farmers

GENEVA: India today told the world community that it will not "compromise on policy space" to protect its vulnerable farmers and infant industries, while asking the WTO to send a strong signal for correcting the distortions in the agriculture trade. Indicating that there was stagnation at the WTO trade ministers' conference, Brazil termed the first day of talks on Monday as "totally useless" due to lack of new ideas at the meeting where absence of Kamal Nath was felt strongly.

"It is absolutely essential for us to protect the livelihood concerns of subsistence farmers. Therefore, provisions like Special Products and Special Safeguard Mechanism are indispensable," Commerce Secretary Gopal Pillai told PTI here. He said the Doha negotiations to open world market should allow developing countries to retain their policy space for protecting their nascent industries. At a time when global food, fuel and financial problems are throwing up challenges, it is important that the ministers participating in the meeting send a strong signal on correcting the distortions in global economy and show their willingness to improve the condition of global trade, he said.

Welcoming the process of negotiations that began at the WTO Ministerial Meeting yesterday, Pillai said India expects ministers would be able to restore the balance between agriculture and Non-Agricultural Market Access (industrial goods) in the next few days and move ahead in other areas. In a statement to the Trade Negotiating Committee, India stressed that talks must address the critical imbalances in agriculture and industrial goods, besides delivering on the specific nature of the development dimension of the Round.