bilaterals.org logo
bilaterals.org logo

India FTAs & agriculture

India seeks ADB funding to help FTA-hit firms
29-Sep-2008 Financial Express
India has asked the Asian Development Bank to contribute to a fund to help compensate industries in the country, such as pepper growers in Kerala, that are adversely hit by the market-opening free trade agreements with several Asian countries.
Korea, India aim to find middle ground on farm goods at Cepa talks
22-Sep-2008 Yonhap
"The aim of the talks will be to ensure the greatest possible protection for sensitive items, so that if a CEPA pact is signed, the fallout for local farmers can be minimized," a Korean ministry official said. He added that talks are entering the home stretch.
India-ASEAN FTA not to hit southern farmers, says Nath
30-Aug-2008 PTI
Allaying fears of the Left-ruled Kerala that an FTA with ASEAN could harm farmers’ interest in the southern states, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath today said India cannot get isolated in the growing economies of east Asia. "They don’t even know what the agreement is," Nath said when asked to comment on Kerala’s opposition to the FTA.
Kamal Nath calls for greater Indian access to Japanese agriculture market
5-Aug-2008 PIB
Shri Kamal Nath, India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry has expressed hope that the India-Japan Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) could be concluded during the next round of talks which are scheduled to be held in New Delhi in September 2008.
Pawar urges SAARC countries to strengthen SAFTA
5-Mar-2008
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Wednesday urged the SAARC countries to strengthen the regional trade and pointed out that the region does not correspond to the so-called natural trading partner hypothesis and "SAFTA’s economic relevance is being questioned".
GM trials in India threaten trade ties
13-Feb-2008 Times of India
India finds itself increasingly on the defensive in agricultural trade for permitting field trials across the country in a host of genetically modified food crops — rice, brinjal, okra, potato, tomato and groundnuts — and thereby exposing conventional crops to the risk of transgenic contamination. A case in point is a rather dodgy no-contamination certificate that the regulator, Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, was forced to give two months ago in response to a restriction imposed by Russia on import of rice, groundnuts and sesame seeds from India.
Seoul, New Delhi to resume trade talks in April
24-Dec-2007 Korea Times
South Korea is holding back on farm products
Sowing a bitter harvest
12-Dec-2007 DNA
One outcome of the Indo-US deal on Agriculture appears to be the deregulation of the GM foods sector.
India mulls FTA with China
6-Dec-2007 Times of India
India is considering a Free Trade Agreement with China but a decision will be based on sensitivities of domestic industry. Minister of State for Commerce and Industry Jairam Ramesh categorically stated that agriculture will not be included in FTAs.
Asean FTA: Time to introspect on domestic oilseed cultivation
28-Nov-2007 Hindu Business Line
In the absence of a clear strategy to put our own house in order, the India-ASEAN FTA negotiations appear to be farcical. Negotiations are conducted between equals and in a level playing field. But here is a situation where everyone knows India is vulnerable.
`Body blow to Kerala farmers`
23-Nov-2007
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s remark that India will show the necessary flexibility on talks for the proposed free trade agreement (FTA) is worrying farmers in Kerala.
Talks on to clinch FTA
22-Nov-2007
India is willing to grant concessions on tariffs for the four agricultural commodities that proved to be a hurdle in finalising the India Asean free trade agreement but made it clear that it expected other countries to match its steps to wrap up the deal.
Manmohan softens stance on FTA
22-Nov-2007
In a small but significant step forward, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said negotiations for the proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the 10-member Asean would be wrapped up by March next year and that India would show “necessary flexibility” to achieve this goal.
Farmers get a shield in India-EU FTA
22-Oct-2007 Economic Times
The free trade agreement (FTA) component of the India-European Union comprehensive economic cooperation agreement (CECA) is likely to exclude nearly 150 farm products to shield Indian farmers from increased competition posed by subsidised goods.
Open letter to the Prime Minister of India on the Indo-US Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture
6-Sep-2007
Given the interest generated with regard to the US-India nuclear deal, it is time to express our concerns on the US-India Knowledge Initiative on Agriculture, too, and not let it be implemented in a business-as-usual attitude.
India should not reduce farm import duties for FTAs: Jairam Ramesh
11-Jul-2007
India should not allow reductions in import duties on agriculture under its free trade agreements (FTAs), Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh said on Tuesday.
India`s ASEAN offer alive to concerns of plantation sector`
3-Jun-2007
India’s latest offer on duty cuts under the proposed FTA with ASEAN addresses long-term concerns of tea, coffee and pepper producers who are embarking on a major replantation drive, government has said.
India: China seeks market economy status
18-Apr-2007 The Hindu
India and China together represent the "new global economic architecture" Indian Commerce Minister Kamal Nath said on Tuesday. But India and China themselves are often embroiled in fractious trade disputes.
South-south trade can lift rural farm fortunes
8-Apr-2007
Developments over the past few days have re-confirmed that the developing countries are more eager than developed countries to break the deadlock in multilateral trade. The developing countries have shown ample flexibility, without waiting for a response from the developed world.
Edible oils made India-ASEAN FTA out of reach in 2006
25-Dec-2006 The Hindu
In a country where oil diplomacy usually relates to petroleum resources, the year 2006 must have come as a lesson for top trade and foreign policy makers.