|
The reports, which claim the proposed free trade agreement with the Asean includes no “negative” list for protecting the essential interests of small farmers, who grow commercial crops like spices and plantation produce, have been denied by the Commerce Ministry.
The top ranking officials said that the talks regarding not including the negative lists in the FTA with Asean under which tariff concession is not allowed had surfaced. It was also added that this would affect the livelihood security of countless of small cultivators and growers, especially of those in States like Kerala.
The sources maintain that the whole list of negative items on which India has not gone for the exchange of tariff concessions number 489 tariff lines at six-digit created harmony in the classification system. As the negative list is also referred to as ‘exclusion list’ in the trade discourses, there was “needless confusion” that India has given access to its market without any provision or protection to do away with the vulnerabilities of local stakeholders.
It was pointed out that all the 10 Asean member nations feature an eight-digit classification system of tariff lines. The sources said this implies that the negative or exclusion list of India actually counts as many as 1,297 items that include an extensive array of essential products, which are important to the farmers of India and small scale sectors.
For clear understanding, all these items have been put up on the web site and in public domain. The sources added that while palm oil has been mentioned on the extremely sensitive list for an extensive duty phase-out, coconut oil remains in the category of negative list.
Other products that feature in the negative list are oilseeds/oils, fisheries, fish, natural rubber, jaggery, tapioca, vanilla, turmeric, cardamom, coconut, cashew kernel, copra, arecanut, banana, betel nut, pineapple, papaya, guava and natural honey.
Mr P.K. Dash, Joint Secretary of Ministry of Commerce, said India is the only nation, which has been given a permission to hold a negative list of 489 tariff lines. According to him, this by far is the biggest list and is at par with Myanmar.
Both the nations have been given permission to maintain 9.36% of their overall trade off from any tariff concessions in answer to their local concerns and compulsions.
He informed that India wanted and secured an extensive negative list. Asean members were not agreeing on this. Asean has insignificant or no negative list in its free trade agreements with nations like China, Japan, South Korea, South Korea, New Zealand and Australia.
Mr. Dash said, of the total $47.4-billion bilateral trade between India and Asean in 2008-09, exports from India accounted for $18.26 billion, whereas its imports accounted for $25.77 billion.
He also showed that exports from India to Singapore brought $8.21 billion out of its $8.26-billion overall trade with Asean. This accounted for 43.4% of trade from a single nation.
Focus point
Mr Dash said that the interesting point is that Singapore does not have a negative list, sensitive list or highly sensitive list like India and others. Also, the extent to which the exported goods from India enjoy duty free entry into Singapore is also not same for the latter. The Hindu Business Line
October 31, 2009
|
