Written by Shankhyaneel Sarkar | Edited by Poulomi Ghosh, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Union commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that India will take reciprocal action if it faces unfair, unjust treatment with respect to trade practices. He said that there are many non-tariff barriers which need to be addressed.
The non-tariff barriers to trade are restrictive practices which lead to impediments in a smooth flow of imports and exports.
“Trade today requires a lot of study, deep diving into what practices other countries follow. There are a lot of non-tariff barriers that need to be studied, we need to work to resolve those barriers. Wherever we will find unfair, unjust treatment to India, India will have to take reciprocal action,” Goyal was quoted as saying by news agency PTI. The Union minister was addressing students at the 54th convocation of Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT).
Goyal said that India is negotiating free trade agreements (FTA) with the UK, UAE and Australia and several other countries. He said that IIFT’s young talents can help the nation achieve the ‘transformational agenda’ for India’s international trade.
He expressed confidence that India will achieve the $400 billion export target this fiscal year.
“We are confident of achieving this year. We have already done $197 billion in six months. We are aspiring to go up to $1 trillion in the near future, each for goods and services…For this we need thousands of young boys and girls coming out from IIFT,” Goyal said. He also stressed upon free trade within a rules-based multilateral trading system with honesty and transparency as core values.
Goyal said that during the FTA talks the subject of dual degrees and collaborations with IIFT also came up for discussion. He urged to take the process of dual degrees forward, to fast-track it and identify institutions of excellence across the world. “Australia, the UK, and UAE have already shown huge interest in collaborating with Indian universities and institutions of eminence and I would urge IIFT to take this process forward,” Goyal said.
Goyal said that his ministry will pursue the matter of granting the IIFT institute of national importance tag in the forthcoming months through making necessary legislative changes that may be required.
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