Monday, December 30, 2013: To safeguard the interest of the domestic industry, India will be looking into the provisions of all the Free Trade Agreements with other countries. E M S Natchiappan, Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry was quoted as saying in a PTI report.
At a session organised by MCC Chamber of Industry, Natchiappan reportedly said, “India will go into the provisions of all the FTAs which the country has signed with other nations. There have been representations from various quarters of the country indicating the negative impact of such pacts. We will protect the domestic industry,” Daily Express reported.
It was further stated that the India-Thailand FTA provisions would be re-assessed as it was affecting the domestic electronics industry. While talks were already initiated, something concrete will be decided once a democratically- elected government assumes office in that nation. “FTAs should be looked as a protective mechanism and not to destroy the domestic industry,” he said.
India has trade pacts with a number of countries like Japan, Korea and Singapore. Additionally, there are a number of agreements with nations like Australia and Canada as well as the European Union. However, industry bodies as well as exporters are worried about the impact of FTAs in the domestic market.
