Bali pact was imperfect, needed course correction: Nirmala Sitharaman

Government on  said it has protected the interest of Indian farmers by ensuring correction in WTO's Bali agreement which was "imperfect".

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also rejected the opposition charge in the Rajya Sabha that India had lost friends in the process of the WTO talks. "We are very clearly saying, Bali was imperfect ... It was an imperfect agreement. It required a course correction and it was that course correction that this government had engaged in from July," she said replying to clarifications on her statement on "India's stand on WTO" made on November 28.

Asserting that the government was ensuring that India's sovereign right is strengthened, she said, "If there are any corrections to be made in the process, we as a government, representing people of India, have a sovereign duty to do the course correction and ensure that our farmers or any such interests are kept intact and protected." To opposition charge that India had gone into WTO talks like 'Abhimanyu', she said, "I would like to tell you here in no uncertain terms that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi we have got in as an Abhimanyu but we came out successfully with 160 friends, building on our predecessor, who had 93 friends."

Seeking clarifications on the minister's statement on WTO, opposition members said it was "confusing" and hoped India's interests and sovereignty would not be compromised on the signing of the trade agreement. Members also sought to know if India had decided to go along with USA and in the bargain lost its friends among the group of developing nations, which India was leading.
Anand Sharma (Cong), who has been a former Commerce Minister accused the minister of "misleading" the House and the country and challenged her saying the work on delinking negotiations on public stock holding for food subsidy purposes was arrived at Bali.

He said the minister has sought to create an impression as if the agreement at Geneva was the outcome of efforts made only by the new government and Prime Minister, which was not the case.
The only difference made is that the deadline for putting in place programmes on food subsidies by seven months from December 2014 to July 2015, he said. Sitharaman clarified that it was a new decision because Bali Ministerial decision of December 7, 2013 said, "Members agreed to put in place an interim mechanism...to negotiate an agreement for a permanent solution to be found" whereas on November 27, 2014, it decided and extended peace clause for perpetuity.

"Let us be clear. This is a new decision with a new date...The ambiguity which prevailed has been removed...2014 agreement has an accelerated mechanism for permanent solution and there will be dedicated sessions for solving agriculture related problems," she said replying to clarification sought by Sharma whether it was a new agreement or old.

Allaying fears of the opposition that government may not consult them during permanent solution, the Commerce Minister said, "When a permanent solution is worked out, it will be agreed upon by all."
FTA, she said will result in reduction of cost of imports and ports will be able to carry more business benefitting the economy.

On members' concern that issues like subisidies by advanced nations were not raised in the meets, Sitharaman said, "We have periodically raised the issue and will continue to raise it. USA spends US $120 billion on it and so is the EU."

She said the government will make all efforts to reach a permanent solution "and would just not sit back because peace clause has been extended...We shall put the national interest on top." "We may be dealing with FTAs but we strongly support multi-lateralism," she added.

She also quoted a Tamil poet to assure the House that common man's interest would not be compromised and "BJP and India has gone to WTO to fight for the right of common man." For Doha round, she said the agenda included issues like agriculture, industrial goods."