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If India does not wish to continually violate the WTO rules, it must also continue to push the WTO to either revisit the reference point of 1986-88 prices for calculating subsidies and pitch it at a recent period, or raise the ceiling on subsidies to enable countries like India to stay within the envisaged cap.
Trade enhancement is not about lowering tariff barriers, but dismantling such regulatory barriers.
India's Food Security Act entitles 82 crore people to 5 kg of foodgrains per person a month at Rs 1-3 per kg.
Substantial gains can still be made with good policies and initiatives.
Businessmen love low import duties on their inputs and high duties on their outputs. And the Bharatiya Janata Party has a keen ear for business sentiment.
In India we have to be careful not to copy any level of dependence on the financial sector and infatuation with the get-rich-quick syndrome, says Jaimini Bhagwati.
The WTO has already significantly lowered its sights since a decade of Doha talks broke down, forcing the body to focus on a much less ambitious set of reforms.
According to the final draft of the negotiating text circulated by WTO Director-General Roberto Azevedo among trade ministers of the 159 member countries on Wednesday night, on public stockholding for food security purposes, a developing country like India can provide subsidies for farm support even if those exceed the permissible 10 per cent cap.
'I am almost tempted to say there is some kind of a vested interest operating to play down the achievements of Modi.' 'I think the focus should be on what has been achieved in 70 days and not on how this government functions.' Commerce Minister Nirmala Sitharaman's exclusive interview with Sheela Bhatt/Rediff.com on how the Modi sarkar is changing India.
India scored a remarkable win on food security, but trade partners will now put pressure on New Delhi to provide meaningful openings for industrial goods and services and be more accommodative on liberalising tariffs.
This was a very strong position and was criticised by many, both from the developed and developing world.
In an interview with Nayanima Basu, the DG lauds the efforts of Indian negotiators in bringing the deal on the table.
Who are the men the prime minister relies on to execute his impressive agenda?
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