India’s stand on key negotiating issues in WTO : A summary

Agriculture
  • Substantial and effective reductions in overall trade-distorting domestic support (OTDS) of the US and EU;
  • Self-designation of an appropriate number of special products (SPs);
  • An operational and effective Special Safeguard Mechanism (SSM);
  • Simplification and capping of developed country tariffs.

Non-Agricultural Market Access (NAMA)
  • Adequate and appropriate flexibilities for protecting economically vulnerable industries;
  • Participation in sectoral initiatives only on a non-mandatory and good faith basis without prejudgment of the final outcome, with substantial special and differential treatment provisions for developing countries;
  • Serious consideration of non-tariff barrier (NTB) textual proposals with wide support such as the horizontal mechanism.

Services
  • Need for qualitative improvement in the revised offers especially on Modes 1(cross-border supply) and 4 (movement of natural persons);
  • Appropriate disciplining of domestic regulations by developed countries.

Rules
  • Tightening of disciplines on anti-dumping (deletion of zeroing clause and reiteration of the lesser duty rule)
  • Effective special and differential treatment for developing countries on fisheries subsidies.

Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)
  • Establishing a clear linkage between the TRIPS Agreement and the Convention on Bio-diversity (CBD) by incorporating specific disclosure norms for patent applications;
  • Enhanced protection for geographical indications (GIs) other than wines and spirits.

Source : Economic Survey 2011-12

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