Govt extends Brajendra Navnit’s tenure as India’s ambassador to WTO by 9 months

The government on Wednesday extended the tenure of Brajendra Navnit as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of India to the World Trade Organization (WTO) by nine months till March 31, 2024. Navnit had assumed office as ambassador in June 2020 and his tenure was till June 28, 2023.

“The Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) has approved the proposal of Department of Commerce for extension in tenure of foreign deputation of Brajendra Navnit,” the Department of Personnel & Training said in an office memorandum.

The extension is for a period “beyond June 28, 2023 and upto March 31, 2024 or until further orders, whichever is earlier”.


Navnit’s extension comes ahead of the 13th ministerial conference of the WTO in February where India is supporting providing flexibilities to developing countries facing food insecurity crises, to subsidise farmers beyond the minimal amount of subsidies allowed at WTO, called de minimis in trade parlance. New Delhi is also looking forward to a decision on extending the global intellectual property rights waiver to Covid therapeutics and diagnostics, a flexibility available to Covid vaccines at present.

It has also objected to carbon border measures that are being selectively applied to “trade-exposed industries” such as steel, aluminium, chemicals, plastics, polymers, chemicals and fertilisers, which reflects the underlying competitiveness concerns driving such measures.