Permanent Solution On Food Security In WTO Rules Is Must: India

"India is a strong supporter of the multilateral trading system and is committed to the WTO, which is in the best interests of developing countries," he said. "What is needed is collective political will to effect timely corrections to imbalances in the working of the system and its rules to ensure that the WTO works impartially and fairly in the interest of all its members and not just a select few," he said.

Noting that there is an urgent need to conclude the Doha Round as per its development mandate, Narang said the round is not about the perpetuation of structural flaws in global trade, especially in agriculture.

"This Round is also not about negotiating livelihood security and subsistence of hundreds of millions of farmers. Instead, this Round is about creating new opportunities and economic growth for developing countries in all sectors," Narang said. "This Round is about aiding the efforts of developing countries for providing food security to their people and ending poverty," he said.

"Indeed the criticism about the Doha Development Round, that it is scarcely about 'Development' and is a round only in terms of its proclivity to go round and round in circles, needs to be addressed purposefully," he added. India has made it clear that it would stick to its position on the food security issue at the WTO as it is the sovereign duty of the government to protect the interest of its poor and that it would not ratify Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) until a permanent solution was found on the food security issue. New Delhi has asked WTO to amend the norms for calculating agriculture subsidies so that India could continue to procure food grains from farmers at minimum support price and sell them to poor at cheaper rates without violating the norms.

Also Read:
HCL Tech Bags Multi-Million Dollar IT Deal From De Beers
UCWeb Partners With Leading E-Commerce Firms