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WT/TPR/W/81  
17 June 2015  
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Trade Policy Review Body   
 
* In Original language only/En langue originale seulement/En el idioma original solamente . 
  INDIA 
DRAFT MINUTES OF THE MEETING* HELD ON 2 AND 4 JUNE 2015 
Delegations are invited to submit factual corrections, if any, on their own statement to the 
Secretariat (Mrs Barbara Blanquart: barbara.blanquart@wto.org , or to tprd@wto.org ) no later 
than 1 July 2015. 
 
Organe d'examen des politiques commerciales 
 
INDE 
PROJET DE COMPTE RENDU DE LA RÉUNION* TENUE LES 2 ET 4 JUIN 2015 
Les délégations sont invitées à soumettre leurs éventuelles corrections factuelles concernant leurs 
propres déclarations au Secrétariat (Mme Barbara Blanquart: barbara.blanquart@wto.org , ou 
tprd@wto.org ) le 1er juillet au plus tard. 
 
Órgano de Examen de las Políticas Comerciales 
 
INDIA 
PROYECTO DE ACTA DE LA REUNIÓN* CELEBRADA LOS DÍAS 2 Y 4 DE JUNIO DE 2015 
Las delegaciones pueden enviar a la Secretaría (Sra. Barbara Blanquart: 
barbara.blanquart@wto.org , o tprd@wto.org ) a más tardar el 1ero de julio de 2015 las 
correcciones fácticas que deseen introducir en sus propias declaraciones. 
 
 
_______________ 
 WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  TRADE POLICY REVIEW 
INDIA 
DRAFT MINUTES OF THE MEETING 
Chairperson: H.E. Mr Atanas Atanassov Paparizov  
CONTENTS 
 
1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CHAI RPERSON ....................................................... 3  
2  OPENING STATEMENT BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF INDIA ......................................... 5  
3  STATEMENT BY THE DISCUSSANT ................................................................................ 9  
4  STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS ........................................................................................ 12  
5  REPLIES BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF  INDIA AND ADDITIONAL COMMENTS ............ 53  
6  CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE CHAI RPERSON ......................................................... 59  
 
 
Note: Advance written questions and additional questions by WTO Members, and the replies 
provided by India are reproduced in document WT/T PR/M/313/Add.1 and will be available online at 
http://www.wto.org/english/tr atop_e/tpr_e/tp_rep_e.htm. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  1  INTRODUCTORY REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON 
1.1.  The sixth Trade Policy Review of India was held on 2 and 4 June 2015. The Chairperson 
H.E. Mr Atanas Atanassov Paparizov (Bulgaria) welcomed the delegation of India headed by the Honourable Mr Rajeev Kher, Commerce Secret ary; the rest of the delegation, including 
H.E. Ambassador Anjali Prasad, Permanent Representative of India to the WTO; other colleagues 
from the Mission in Geneva; and the discussant, H.E. Ambassador Esteban B. Conejos (Philippines). 
1.2.  The Chairperson recalled the purpose of th e Trade Policy Reviews and the main elements of 
the procedures for the meeting. The report by  India was contained in document WT/TPR/G/313 
and that of the WTO Secretariat in WT/TPR/S/313. 
1.3.  The following delegations submitted questi ons before the deadline of 19 May and had been 
transmitted to the delegation of India: Malaysia; China; Australia; Mexico; Switzerland; Canada; 
Hong Kong, China; Colombia; Argentina; the Unit ed States; Singapore; the Republic of Korea; 
Kenya; New Zealand; Oman; Japan; Guatemala;  the Philippines; Chinese Taipei; Norway; 
Indonesia; the European Union; Chile; Brazil and Peru. The following delegations submitted written 
questions after the deadline and had also been tran smitted to the delegation of India: the Russian 
Federation; the Dominican Republic; Costa Rica; Thailand; Turkey; Saudi Arabia; Ecuador and 
Trinidad and Tobago. 
1.4.  The Chairperson was very pleased to no te that India's economic growth had been 
accelerating and inflation had become slightly milder in recent years. The current account deficit had also been decreasing recently thanks, in particular, to the contribution of services exports, and 
the macroeconomic outlook was positive. The Chairperson was sure that Members would be 
interested in learning about what steps the au thorities were taking, or planned to take, to 
consolidate its economic development, as well as their views on India's future economic and trade 
prospects. 
1.5.  The Chairperson was also pleased to note that, since its last Review in 2011, India had 
continued its efforts to liberalize and facilitate trade, such as the introduction of self-assessment in 
customs procedures and the elimination of state-trading requirements for some agricultural 
products. India had also continued to liberalize its investment policies, including raising foreign-ownership limits in some sectors, such as insurance and railway transport. 
1.6.  With regard to the overall policy framew ork, both the Government and Secretariat reports 
had briefly touched upon the Government's new Foreign Trade Policy for the period between 2015 
and 2020. The Chairperson understood that this Policy was released on 1 April 2015 and he was sure that Members would be interested in learning more about this Policy, as various Members had 
sought information in their written questions about the details and implication of this Policy for 
India's trade policy formulation and implementation. 
1.7.  As both reports indicated, agriculture played an important role for employment and 
livelihoods, but its productivity was still low. The Government, in its report, emphasized that 
increasing agricultural productivity was necessary to bolster food security. In this context, many 
Members asked questions about India's support meas ures for agriculture, including the National 
Food Security Act adopted in 2013. The Chairperson was sure that Members would be interested in 
learning more about how India intended to achieve this objective through the use of these and 
other measures and/or adopting new measures. 
1.8.  The Chairperson also noted that various Members asked questions regarding, for example, 
the increase in import tariffs, India's business environment and foreign investment regime 
including industrial licensing requirements, adoption and implementation of the Agreement on Trade Facilitation, clarifications for tariffs and other related duties and charges, recent amendment 
to legislation regarding anti-dumping measures, as well as regarding standards, technical 
regulations and SPS measures and their relations with international standards, export support 
measures, incentives and subsidies accorded to various sectors and exports, measures related to intellectual property rights, including India's use of compulsory licence, and measures related to 
manufacturing and services. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  1.9.  At the time of the previous TPR, Members had raised questions on: the complex structure of 
tariff and non-tariff measures, active use of antidumping measures, and the scientific basis for certain sanitary and phytosanitary measures. Members had also encouraged India to: eliminate remaining investment barriers, notify to the WTO various incentive schemes, enhance the 
openness and transparency of its government procurement, strengthen the enforcement of 
intellectual property rights, and liberalize agriculture and services. These concerns have appeared again in the questions posed by Members in the ongoing Review. The Chairperson was sure that 
these and many other themes would be touched upon in greater detail at their deliberations on the 
first and second day and they all looked forward to hearing India's responses to these and other 
queries. Of course, he was sure Members would ask other issues as well. 
1.10.  The Chairperson closed his introductory remarks by wishing India a very successful sixth 
Trade Policy Review. He looked forward to its active engagement in this TPR. 
1.11.  He also noted that a podcast would be made of the meeting which could be accessed on the 
Members' website. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  2  OPENING STATEMENT BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF INDIA (HONOURABLE RAJEEV 
KHER) 
2.1.  India welcomes the sixth Trade Policy Re view of India by the WTO. I thank the WTO 
Secretariat team for the painstaking work they have put in on India's Trade Policy Review and the 
comprehensive report they have brought out. Let me also convey our thanks to the Permanent 
Representative of the Philippines, Ambassador Esteban B. Conejos, for agreeing to be the Discussant. 
2.2.  India welcomes the interest of the WTO Me mbership in this Review. We look forward to a 
fruitful interaction with all of you over the ne xt two days and would be happy to provide any 
further information or clarifications you may require in addition to our responses to the 700 plus questions raised by around more than 30 Members.  
2.3.  We welcome this opportunity to apprise the WTO Membership about the Indian economy and 
our government's policies particularly our trade policy framework. We see such interactions with the WTO Membership as a valuable opportunity to gain an understanding of different perspectives 
as well as discuss some of the views expressed in the Secretariat's report.  
2.4.  The previous Trade Policy Review of Indi a took place in 2011, a year when the global 
economic crisis was at its peak. Four years later, the crisis is behind us but uncertainties and 
challenges continue. While some of the developed countries appear to have got back on the 
recovery path, growth in many other major economies is still weak.  
The Indian economy 2.5.  Against this backdrop, the outlook for India holds out a promise of strong and steady growth. 
Several factors, both global and domestic, have provided a significant fillip to India's growth, 
particularly in recent months, such as decline in international oil prices, moderation in inflation and domestic reform initiatives. 
2.6.  However, the country faces several challenges. While nearly half the population of the 
country is still engaged in agriculture for their livelihood, the share of agriculture in total GDP is less than 20%. For the past few years, agricultural incomes in the country have come under 
severe stress on account of rising input cost and inability of farmers to get reasonable prices for 
their produce. We also have the challenge of en suring food security, particularly for the large 
number of poor in the country. Other challenges are to develop a robust manufacturing base in the country, generate employment for the large numbers joining the work force each year and work 
on the acute infrastructure deficit. At the same time, the Government also has to maintain fiscal 
discipline and this calls for a very delicate balancing act.   
New beginnings 
2.7.  The last year has been a year of new be ginnings. We have charted out a brand new agenda 
for reform, growth and investment. This is a model of better governance with less government. While the business of the Government will be to keep the Government out of business, we are 
committed to improving the ease of doing business,  simplifying procedures, facilitating industry, 
trade and business to be efficient and, most importantly, passing on the benefit of the growth process to the common man by creating jobs. 
2.8.  There is a new dynamism in the Indian economy. The Government clearly recognizes the 
critical importance of the manufacturing sector to boost and sustain economic growth by driving 
mass production and production by the masses. A flagship initiative of the Government is "Make in India" which aims to facilitate investment, foster innovation, create jobs, develop a skilled 
workforce and develop high quality manufacturing infrastructure. All these FDI reform measures 
have been consolidated and can be accessed online. 
2.9.  To ensure that India's products are of world standard, we have developed a roadmap on 
measures required to protect consumers, raise the quality of the merchandise produced and 
enhance India's capacity to manufacture products  which can meet the requirements and standards 
of even the most discerning markets.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  2.10.  Similarly, many services sectors have been identified for internal reforms aimed at raising 
their competitiveness and quality with a view to enhancing India's engagement in international trade in services. We recently hosted a successful Global Exhibition on Services which served as a 
platform to strengthen our engagement in trade in services and attract FDI inflows into the 
services sector. This will be an annual event. 
2.11.  There is a special emphasis on improvement of physical infrastructure, for which a new 
National Infrastructure Investment Fund has been set up. 
2.12.  We have very liberal Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) norms across sectors. The FDI limits 
have been raised in insurance, railways and defence production.  
2.13.  A major focus area of our reform agenda  is the ease of doing business. An "e-Biz", 
Government to Business portal has been set up to serve as a one-stop shop for delivery of services 
to investors and to address the needs of business and industry from inception through the entire 
life cycle of the business. The portal has a provis ion to apply and pay online for a list of selected 
Central Government services, to which we are adding more every day. Several State Governments 
are also part of this project.  
2.14.  A major transformative reform is the Goods and Services Tax (GST) slated to be introduced 
from the next financial year. The implementation of the GST would remove multiple layers of 
taxation and make Indian trade and industry more  competitive by integrating markets, reducing 
inflation and the cost of production. 
2.15.  We want to foster a culture of innovation, R&D and scientific research in India. As a step in 
this direction, a corpus fund was created in this year's budget. By taking broadband connectivity to 
all parts of the country, the Digital India programme will also contribute to making India a 
knowledge and innovation based society. A Self-Employment and Talent Utilization mechanism and an Innovation Mission have been established to nurture entrepreneurship and innovation.  
2.16.  The Annual Budget of the Government of In dia has delivered on some pressing issues for 
micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), such as providing access to funding and addressing the inverted duty structure in some key segments. 
2.17.  India's demographic advantage is well known. The challenge is to provide gainful 
employment to large numbers being added to the workforce every year, through job creation and 
skill up gradation. A dedicated Department has been set up to promote skill development and entrepreneurial activities.  
2.18.  Along with the challenge of creating jobs, we are mindful of the need  for bringing existing 
labour laws in tune with market demands, while ensuring labour protection and welfare measures. 
2.19.  For a large country like India, financial inclusion poses a big challenge. We have an 
important new programme in place for fostering financial inclusion. This envisages universal access 
to banking facilities with at least one basic banking account for every household. Over 150 million accounts have been opened under this programme. Be tter financial inclusion will support initiatives 
for transfer of benefits dire ctly to people in time.  
2.20.  Major reforms have been initiated for improving transparency, efficiency and better 
enforcement. The recently conducted transparent coal and spectrum auctions are two such examples.   
2.21.  Apart from its transformative economic e ffect, the GST will bring in greater transparency 
and enable better administration by re moving multiple layers of taxation. 
2.22.  India has a three-tiered governance architecture which makes policy formulation and 
implementation a challenging exercise. To facili tate decentralized and more efficient planning, 
States have now been made equal partners in nation building in a spirit of cooperative and competitive federalism. To put this into effect, a much larger proportion of Government revenues 
will now go to the States. We are creating an institutional framework to enable States to play a 
greater role in promoting trade.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  Trade policy 
2.23.  We have put in place a new Foreign Trade Policy (FTP) for the period 2015-20 which seeks 
to make trade a major contributor to the country's economic growth and development. Its objective is to provide a stable, sustainable and predictable policy environment for trade in 
merchandise and services. While India's foreign trade policy does keep in view domestic supply 
concerns, it has rarely been used for this purpose. In fact, it has steadily moved over the years, towards greater liberalization.   
2.24.  The new FTP complements various new initiatives such as "Make in India", "Digital India" 
and "Skill India". It prepares India to respond to external challenges and to keep in step with a 
rapidly evolving international trading architecture. Our vision is to make India a significant participant in world trade by the year 2020. The Government aims to boost India's exports of 
merchandise and services and raise India's share in world exports from 2% to 3.5%.   
2.25.  We are also taking special measures such as outreach programmes and specialized training 
to help new entrepreneurs and manufacturers to participate in global trade. The FTP has a special 
focus on trade facilitation and the ease of doing business. Recently, the number of documents 
required for exports and imports was reduced to th ree, comparable with international benchmarks. 
We are also moving ahead in the direction of crea ting an electronic governance system in which 
exporters and importers would be able to submit all relevant documents online.  
2.26.  India has continued steadily on a path of trade liberalization and is becoming increasingly 
integrated in the global economy. While growth in both exports and imports slowed down during 
the review period, imports have been consistent ly higher than exports, an indicator of the 
openness of our market. The trade deficit has remained high in these years, reaching a little more 
than US$190 billion in 2012-13, about 11% of th e country's GDP and one of the highest amongst 
large economies.  
2.27.  India's tariff structure reflects the country's continuous efforts in the direction of trade 
liberalization. As indicated in the Secretariat report, while the average bound MFN rate for all products is 50%, the applied rates are much lower, especially in the case of agricultural goods. 
The simple average MFN applied tariff is just 13% for all products and 9.5% for non-agricultural 
products. We have a simple tariff structure, with ad valorem  duties on about 94% of our tariff 
lines. Alternate or specific duties apply to a mere 6% of In dia's tariff lines.  
India and the WTO 
2.28.  While the multilateral trading system needs to keep pace with new developments, it is well 
recognized that there are several asymmetries in the current trade rules which places developing countries at a disadvantage. The G-33 coalition took up one such asymmetry in the Agreement on 
Agriculture and was able to persuade the WTO Membership to work on this issue. We must aim to 
achieve a positive outcome at an early date.  
2.29.  India is committed to assisting LDCs for their enhanced participation in international trade. 
We have further expanded our Duty Free Tariff Preference Scheme for LDCs which was introduced 
in 2008. It now provides duty free market access on 96% of India's tariff lines and preferential duties on 2.2% of the lines.  
2.30.  At the high-level meeting of the WTO Servic es Council in February this year, India made an 
offer of preferential treatment to LDCs. This includ es waiver of visa fees for LDC applicants seeking 
Indian business and employment visas, technical assistance and capacity building initiatives and 
market access commitments. These preferences woul d remain valid for a period of 15 years from 
the date of notification by India. 
2.31.  In accordance with a commitment made by India in the WTO, we are running a Technical 
Assistance Programme for the cotton sector in six countries of Africa, namely Benin, Burkina Faso, 
Chad, Uganda, Nigeria and Malawi.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  2.32.  We are happy to have had the opportunity to serve the training and capacity-building needs 
of a large number of developing countries in the As ia Pacific region by hosting the WTO's Regional 
Trade Policy Course for four consecutive years (2011 to 2014).  
India in the Evolving Global Trade Architecture 
2.33.  The world over, countries seem to be negotiating free trade pacts at a frenetic pace. India 
too is negotiating seven such agreements including the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.  
2.34.  Mega-regional trading arrangements are new features on the international trading 
landscape with the potential to bring about enormous changes in world trade dynamics. Notwithstanding these developments, we should maintain the centrality of the WTO in the global commerce and trade architecture. The Doha Round may have run into one obstacle after another 
but it is in our collective interest to work towards a balanced approach in all pillars, keeping its 
development dimension intact.  
2.35.  Fifteen years ago, India occupied a very small space on the global trade canvas. Today, 
foreign trade is a significant part of the Indian  economy. The trade performance of a country is 
closely and inextricably linked with its overall economic policies. As various new initiatives of the Government start showing results, India will be come more competitive in several product areas 
which would, in turn, open up better trade prospects.  
2.36.  In conclusion, I would like to say that through focused efforts aimed at overcoming the 
challenges of poverty, unemployment and income in equality, we are confident that India will play 
an increasingly important role in global trade. A lot has been achieved but we are conscious that 
more needs to be done. India is a work in  progress, an idea whose time has come.  
2.37.  I thank all the Members once again for thei r keen interest in India's Trade Policy Review, 
and look forward to our interaction over the next two days. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  3  STATEMENT BY THE DISCUSSANT 
3.1.  The last time I visited India was in 2010. I remember India's imposing structures as well as 
the country's size and diverse, ever changing land scape. India is one of the most ethnically varied 
countries in the world. Hindi is the official language and English is widely used; at the same time, 
there are 24 languages spoken by at least a m illion or more people, and at least 1,600 known 
minor languages and dialects. As a Federal Republic, the country is divided into 25 states and seven territories. And these States often vary greatly from one to the next in terms of 
infrastructure and the amount of revenue they generate for the country overall.  
3.2.  In relation to the world, India is increasingly becoming an important trading partner for many 
WTO Members. In fact, India emerged as the world's 3
rd largest economy in terms of purchasing 
power parity (PPP) according to the World Bank's International Comparison Program (ICP) data for 
2015. The strengthening of India's economic activi ty during the period under review has been 
supported by an accelerating growth where real  GDP growth was 6.9% in 2013-14 and estimated 
to be around 7.4% in 2014-15. India's per capita GDP was around US$1,500 in 2013-14. This 
achievement had been driven by services and ma nufacturing while agriculture had expanded much 
more slowly. While the growth rate has picked up , the inflation rate stood at 5.9% in July to 
September 2014. 
3.3.  India's trade policy objectives are stipulated in its Foreign Trade Policy (FTP), which is issued 
every five years, but revised peri odically to take into account internal and external factors. 
Through the new 2015-20 FTP, released on 1 April 2015, Prime Minister Modi aims to elevate India as a significant participant in international trade and to raise India's share of global exports to 
3.5% by 2020. The focus of the Government is to support both the manufacturing and services 
sectors driven by the slogan "Make in India" with emphasis on improving the "ease of doing 
business". While the motivation to progress is mounting, it is just appropriate for us to invite the 
Indian delegation to tell us more about this programme, starting perhaps with what India intends 
to make.  
3.4.  To put us all into perspective for the current review, allow me to go back to areas that were 
put forward during the last review. In 2011, Members invited India to consider: (i) revising 
subsidies in certain sectors; (ii) reductions in agricultural tariffs; (iii) streamlining of SPS and TBT measures on agricultural imports; (iv) removal of restrictions in certain areas of government procurement to Indian goods and services; and (v ) continuously increasing use of anti-dumping 
measures.  
3.5.  Let us look at how these issues played out since then. Subsidies 
3.6.  The good exports have played a greater role in contributing to India's recent economic 
growth than in previous years. The Secretariat re port noted efforts taken by India to diversify the 
sources of its growth, and in particular, to take advantage of more open markets around the world 
to export more goods. Increasing India's share in  global exports remains the main thrust of the 
Government's trade policy goals. India pushed exports in the past year through a series of new export incentives. Direct or indirect subsidies as reported in the Central Government's Annual Budget amounted to Rs 2,667.0 billion (2.1% of GDP).   
3.7.  The bulk of India's explicit subsidies continue to be aimed at supporting agriculture, food, 
fertilizers and petroleum such as interest rate subsidies under the Technology Upgradation Scheme for the textile sector. Price controls, which apply to some commodities, including liquefied 
petroleum gas, natural gas, kerosene, and agricultural products, are mainly aimed at providing 
subsidies to farmers and the population under the poverty line. In 2012, new price controls on drugs were introduced with a view to ensuring availability of "essential medicines". The central 
Government also allocates funds to subsidize lending interest rates, including for exporters. 
3.8.  It would therefore be interesting to know whether India had evaluated the effectiveness of 
these schemes and given consideration to streamlining its import regime. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  Tariffs 
3.9.  The Secretariat report indicated that the standard rate of tariff is the statutory duty 
prescribed in the First Schedule to the Customs Tariff Act. However, the "effective" tariff rate 
changes, based on general and "end-user" based exemptions which lowers the standard rate for 
certain users and adjustments made to the tariff through notifications issued in the Gazette of 
India. The effective rate can therefore vary throughout the year which adds to the complexity of the tariff and uncertainty for traders.  
3.10.  The simple average applied MFN tariff in 2014-15 is 13%, up from 12% at the time of the 
last review (2010-11). While around 75% of the tariff is bound, tariff rates for agricultural products range from 10% to 300%, compared with  those for manufactured products with 0% to 
150%). The agricultural sector being of critical im portance to the Indian economy, both for food 
security and for gainful employment, is the focus of India's tariff policy on supporting domestic 
agricultural policy objectives. 
3.11.  Members pointed out in the last review that India's tariff structure remains complex. In fact, 
rates increased during the present review period. With this current state, Members will benefit 
from having additional information concerning the future course of India's tariff reforms, particularly in terms of simplification and liberalization of its tariff structure, as well as narrowing 
the difference between applied and bound tariffs.  
SPS and TBT 3.12.  During the last review, a number of Members questioned the scientific basis for certain 
sanitary and phytosanitary measures adopted by India, and pointed out that certain technical 
standards could constitute a barrier to trade.  
3.13.  Since 2011, the main changes to SPS measures in India included the full implementation of 
the Food Safety and Standards Ac t 2006 on 5 August 2011 by way of, inter alia , adoption of 
four regulations related to Food Additives, Prohibition and Restriction on Sales, Contaminants, 
Toxins and Residues and Laboratory and Sampling  Analysis. The FSSA is intended to increase 
transparency of the scientific basis upon which India's SPS measures are adopted through, among 
others, harmonization with international standards. Furthermore, the Secretariat report indicated 
that India regularly participates in the activities of Codex Alimentarius.  
3.14.  It is worth noting that the report also stated that the authorities intend to recognize 
equivalence of its trading partners' SPS measures based on Codex Guidelines. And when FSSA is 
framing standards and procedures of an SPS nature , all regulations notified under FSS regulations 
are sent to the WTO where a total of 60 days is provided to Members for comments on draft notifications.  
3.15.  I would like to invite the Indian delega tion to provide an update on the process for 
harmonizing its food standards with international standards. 
Transparency and openness 
3.16.  During the last review, many Members lauded  India's decision to participate as an observer 
to the WTO Government Procurement Agreement an d encouraged India to consider becoming a 
full Member. However, Members also noted in the last review that India restricted certain areas of government procurement to Indian goods and services.  
3.17.  As a response, India began the proce ss of formulating a comprehensive government 
procurement legislation that is applicable to all parts of the central Government; of which the legislation is also intended to accommodate requirements of the WTO Agreement on Government 
Procurement. In 2012, all ministries and depa rtments of the central government use an 
e-procurement system to publish all tender enquiries. However, in 2012, the Department of Telecommunications issued a notification concerning its policy for according preference to 
domestically-manufactured telecom products in procurement due to security considerations.  I 
believe this is something that Members would appreciate to know why this is the case.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  3.18.  In terms of FDI, India has also adop ted measures to attract investments gradually 
increasing the number of sectors in which FDI is permitted and reducing sectoral restrictions. Since its last review, India has continued to liberalize its investment policies, including raising foreign-ownership limits in some sectors, such as pharmaceuticals, insurance and railway 
transport. I am sure Members welcomed these developments. 
Anti-dumping measures 3.19.  India is one of the most active users of anti-dumping measures among WTO Members 
having initiated more than 82 anti-dumping investigations against 23 trading partners during the 
period under review. At the same time, India is a major victim of anti-dumping actions. 
Anti-dumping measures nevertheless appear to be a double-edged sword since the domestic use 
of these measures is levied on top of tariffs that are already high thereby undoing the liberalization 
by previous tariff reductions.  
3.20.  Nonetheless, during the same period, significant changes were made to India's 
anti-dumping legislation including new rules of defining situations that are considered to represent 
the circumvention of anti-dumping duties, and providing for anti-dumping investigations to 
address such circumvention. India initiated one countervailing investigation during the period, but no definitive countervailing measure is in place.  
3.21.  Once again, I believe that Members would be interested to know how the modifications on 
the legislation on anti-dumping addressed India's concerns. 
3.22.  Overall, India had rolled impressive improvements in many areas. India is a willing 
reformer, but appears to be confronted sometimes by domestic challenges to change. As noted in 
the Secretariat's report, India's trade policy is largely driven by domestic supply considerations 
and also intended to attain short-term objectives, such as containing fluctuations in commodity prices. At the same time, market access remains impeded in areas of major export interest. In 
conclusion, I would like to invite India to expound some more on how its current regime is 
increasing the country's openness to trade and dedication to combat the aforementioned challenges.  
3.23.  Looking back, India and its people have ma de a lasting impression on me. I will always 
remember the extraordinary places of India with its ancient cultures, religions, monuments, including the fashion and film industries of Bollywood – all things great and small that add up to what we call an "Incredible India".   
3.24.  Finally, I would like to thank Her Excellency Ambassador Anjali Prasad for the opportunity of 
knowing and looking at India from a new perspective, this time through the prism of "Make in India". WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4  STATEMENTS BY MEMBERS 
MALAYSIA  ON BEHALF  OF ASEAN 
4.1.  ASEAN and India formally became dialogue partners 20 years ago and since then, trade and 
investment between ASEAN and India have grown exponentially, expanding more than twenty-fold 
to reach US$67.86 billion in 2013. Foreign direct investment net inflows from India to ASEAN 
amounted to US$1.3 billion in 2013. With a combin ed population of 1.97 billion between ASEAN 
and India, as well as robust GDP growth, it is certainly a mutually beneficial partnership for both 
ASEAN and India. 
4.2.  We therefore applaud India's commitment in pursuing a modern, comprehensive and high-
quality trade agreement with ASEAN and five othe r Dialogue Partners in the region with its 
participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations. We believe 
that the RCEP will broaden current engagement  that has already been achieved through the 
existing ASEAN+1 FTAs. 
4.3.  ASEAN also welcomes the signing of ASE AN-India Trade in Services and Investment 
Agreement on 9 September 2014. We hope the Agreement which is expected to come into force 
on 15 July 2015 would create not only further market opportunity but also strengthens our position in the global value chain. 
4.4.  ASEAN appreciates that India continues to be an active participant in the multilateral trading 
system and assumes a key role in the DDA negotiations. We look forward to working closely with India to ensure deliverables ahead of the 10
th Ministerial Conference in Nairobi, which would 
contribute towards our efforts in concluding  the DDA. ASEAN also commends India's trade 
facilitation measures which are being introduced to make export and import competitive and 
reduce transaction costs. Based on these develo pments, ASEAN hopes that India will submit her 
notification of Category A of the WTO Trade Fa cilitation Agreement and thereafter expedite the 
ratification process. 
4.5.  Some of us in ASEAN have submitted writte n questions to the delegation of India and would 
like to thank India in advance for their written responses. In conclusion, on behalf of ASEAN 
member States, we would like to express our appreciation to India, in particular Ambassador Anjali 
Prasad and her delegation for their constructive engagement with delegations in Geneva. 
MALAYSIA 4.6.  We take note of India's recent initiative to become a significant participant in international 
trade and to raise its share of global exports to 3.5% by 2020 through the new Foreign Trade 
Policy (FTP) for 2015-2020. The Trade Facilitation (TF) and ease of doing business (EODB) features and the streamlining incentives would certainly el evate India's trade performance. We also monitor 
with interest India's initiative to reduce the export incentive schemes and the phasing out its 
export subsidy commitment. 
4.7.  India has traditionally been a close economic partner of Malaysia. In 2014, India was 
Malaysia's 11
th largest trading partner, the 8th largest export destination and 13th largest import 
source. Our bilateral trade increased by 6.9% to reach US$13.84 billion compared to US$12.88 billion in 2013. Bilateral investment flows also continue to improve. As of 2014, 120 manufacturing projects with Indian participation were implemented with total investment of 
US$1.2 billion. 
4.8.  The Malaysia-India Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (MICECA) as well as 
the ASEAN-India Agreement on Trade in Goods and Services are another milestone of Malaysia-
India economic relations. The FTAs have been in strumental in boosting trade flows between the 
two countries and supporting our business communities. The built-in review process demonstrates our shared commitment to continually improve the quality of our bilateral FTA and adapt to 
changing business demands, so as to enable ou r companies to better benefit from market access 
opportunities with reduced business costs. Both countries are also negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) under  the ASEAN plus 6 initiative which makes up 
45% of the world population and contributes towards a third of the worlds' total GDP. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.9.  While Malaysia welcomes the trade initiatives and further liberalization undertaken 
unilaterally by India over the review period, we are also concerned that a number of protectionist-like policy tools are still in place, such as customs restrictions and trade remedies that could be regarded as barriers to trade. Thus, we encourage India to review these measures holistically so 
as to enhance its exporters' competitiveness while synchronizing its approach towards imports 
from broader policy perspective. 
CHINA 
4.10.  India is an original Member of the WTO an d has been a strong supporter of the multilateral 
trading system and an active participant in the Doha Development Agenda negotiations, vigorously pushing forward the development objectives, with an aim to establish a more fair and equitable 
international trading system. It is worth noting that despite of its own development challenges, 
India has been providing duty free and quota free  treatment to the LDCs, which we believe is 
highly commendable.  
4.11.  We are pleased to see that the India's ec onomy has been growing robustly in recent years 
and the benefit of such growth process has been  passed to the whole society and all the people. 
This is no easy task given the fact that sinc e the last Review in 2011, the Indian economy has 
weathered quite a number of challenges amid the global economic slowdown. 
4.12.  We commend India for its efforts in taking a range of reform initiatives to enhance the 
overall growth and trade and investment liberalization and facilitation. This is testified by the introduction of self-assessment in Customs procedures, the elimination of state-trading requirements for some agricultural products and pr ice controls on diesel etc. China welcomes the 
measures taken by India to attract FDI, including recent initiatives such as "make in India" and 
raising foreign-ownership caps in such sectors as insurance and railway transport. 
4.13.  In this regard, India's two-way merchandise trade reached US$760 billion in 2013-14, 
taking up 44.1% of the GDP. Trade is playing a significant role in India's economic development, 
with an ultimate objective to reap the benefits of international trade to meet the development needs of the country.   
4.14.  As two largest developing countries, China and India support each other's growth and 
development processes and have been strategic and cooperative partners. China is the largest trading partner of India and India is China's to p trading partner in the South Asia. During the 
review period, bilateral economic and trade cooper ation continued to develop in a rapid and sound 
manner, with rapid increase in two-way trade and investment flows. Last month, during Indian 
Prime Minister's visit to China, business agreements worth US$22 billion were signed between the two sides, mainly focusing on infrastructure, which will further consolidate our bilateral economic 
and trade cooperation. It was agreed that both sides would take necessary measures to remove 
impediments to bilateral trade and investment, facilitate greater market access to each other's economies, and further strengthen the trade and investment exchanges. 
4.15.  With rapid growth of economic cooperation, it is also true that there are concerns from our 
business communities which we need to pay sufficient attention to and handle in a friendly manner. Those include frequent use of anti-dumping measures, complex import regime and strict security reviews on the importing of foreign telecommunication equipment and application in the 
infrastructure projects of harbour, communication and airport. We earnestly hope that India could 
exercise due restrains and enhance transparency and predictability in this regard.  
4.16.  This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of the WTO. China is looking 
forward to working hard with India and other WTO Members to complete the Post-Bali Working 
Programme on time and contribute to the conclusion of the Doha Round soonest possible. 
4.17.  We thank the Indian delegation for their reply to China's written questions, which we will go 
through carefully. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  AUSTRALIA 
4.18.  India is an important economic partner for Australia. Our bilateral relationship is solid, 
underpinned by shared values, growing people-to-people links and the complementarity of our economies. Two-way Prime Ministerial visits last year demonstrate the commitment we share to 
strengthening links between our two countries. 
4.19.  India is Australia's 12
th largest two-way trading partner and our seventh largest export 
market. Equating to nearly $15 billion in 2013-14, our trade was dominated by resources and 
energy, which is helping to drive India's economic growth. Services trade was also strong, 
particularly in education, with India now Australia's second largest source country for overseas students. We are confident our bilateral trading relationship still has enormous upside potential given it is currently around one-tenth of two-way trade between Australia and China. 
4.20.  Australia is seeking a high quality, mutually beneficial Comprehensive Economic Cooperation 
Agreement with India by the end of this year. As  we enter a new era of two-way investment and 
business engagement, a high-quality and mutually beneficial CECA will lay the ground for more 
growth, more jobs and greater prosperity in our countries. Australia is also pleased to be working 
constructively with India and other to advance regional economic integration through negotiations toward the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). 
4.21.  Australia is paying close attention to the Indian government's economic reform agenda. We 
welcome the steps that have been taken to modernize India's economy, particularly in the areas of foreign investment, ease of doing business and project approvals. We encourage India to continue down the path of economic and trade policy refo rm, which will pave the wa y for benefits flowing 
from productivity gains, increased competitiveness and further integration. In particular, we 
applaud India's decision last year to implement market pricing reforms for fuel. On trade facilitation, we look forward to the timely submission of India's Category A notification and 
encourage India to ratify the Trade Facilitation Agreement as soon as is possible. 
4.22.  Members will be aware Australia has raised the issue of India's provision of export subsidies 
on sugar in the Committee on Agriculture on a number of occasions. We remain concerned that 
India's sugar rules appear inconsistent with India's obligations under the Agreement on Agriculture 
and are distorting the international sugar market. India has advised it has not yet made any payments under the export subsidy programme. If this is the case, it should be relatively straightforward for India to terminate this programme. We would urge India to revisit this issue. 
4.23.  Australia has also registered concerns re garding India's notifications on domestic support 
and its market price support programmes. We are concerned that the methodology used underestimates India's domestic support expenditure. Also of concern is the timeliness of 
notifications from India on agriculture which is in contrast to the transparent and open information 
the Government of India makes available online and domestically. 
4.24.  India is one of the most influential Members of the WTO. It plays a crucial role as our 
discussions, frequently championing the cause of poorer WTO Members. At the same time, India 
has become a global economic power, and a major influence in global markets for a range of agricultural products. India's policy settings have the capacity to enhance and to undermine opportunities for other developing countries. 
4.25.  Australia welcomes the high quality commitments India foreshadowed at the recent 
High-Level Meeting on the LDC Services Waiver, which testify to India's capacity and commitment to supporting the participation of the poorest countries in global trade. Australia acknowledges 
India's fundamental right to work towards improvin g the position of its poor. At the same time, 
Australia would welcome an ongoing consciousness in India of the impact of its policies on other WTO Members, particularly in agriculture, which is so crucial to the prospects for developing 
least-developed countries. 
MÉXICO 4.26.  Mientras muchos países están lidiando con bajas tasas de crecimiento, India está caminando 
en dirección opuesta. Según datos del FMI, su tasa  de crecimiento se situará en 7,2% y 7,5% para WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  el próximo año, posicionándose como la economía del G-20 con el crecimiento más acelerado del 
mundo.  
4.27.  De acuerdo con el propio FMI, en 2019, el tamaño real de su economía se habrá duplicado 
comparándola con 2009, esto es en tan solo 10 años. Para ese mismo año, el PIB de India 
superará al de Japón y Alemania juntos y su producción también será mayor a la de Rusia, Brasil e 
Indonesia juntos, lo que claramente refleja el peso, impacto y responsabilidad de India en la economía mundial.  
4.28.  En cuanto a servicios, estos representa n más de la mitad de su PIB, el 35% de sus 
exportaciones y más del 50% de su captación de IED. México ve con agrado las modificaciones reglamentarias implementadas en este sector, como el programa para el establecimiento de filiales bancarias, el aumento del límite de la IED a 49% en el sector de los seguros y la adopción de la 
Política Nacional de Telecomunicaciones, así como la reducción de barreras a la inversión 
extranjera directa, en telecomunicaciones, aviación civil, ferrocarriles, defensa y construcción. 
4.29.  Desde el último examen, India ha implementado acertadas medidas para facilitar el 
comercio, entre ellas la simplificación de procedimientos administrativos, la reducción de 
documentos para exportar, la instauración de la autoevaluación en los procedimientos aduaneros, la implementación del portal de comercio y el proyecto "E-Biz" para atender las necesidades de 
inversores y empresas. En este sentido, hacemos un llamado a India para que presente a la 
brevedad su notificación de las medidas de categoría A bajo el Acuerdo sobre Facilitación del Comercio. 
4.30.  En materia agrícola, India debe enfocarse en la baja productividad de su sector, el cual es el 
principal destino de sus subvenciones, las cuales se concentran en programas de sostenimiento de 
precios, los más distorsionadores del comercio y la producción. Sobre todo, consideramos debe prestar atención a la complejidad de su régimen de importación y a su estructura arancelaria, 
donde el arancel promedio aplicado a los productos agrícolas es de 33,5%, más del triple que para 
productos no agrícolas (10,2%).Los aranceles consolidados son a su vez el triple de los aplicados. 
4.31.  Aunado a lo anterior, casi todas las importaciones están sujetas al pago de diversos 
gravámenes y derechos adicionales, lo que tiene como consecuencia que el promedio global de 
aranceles aplicados aumente del 13% al 28%. Esta variabilidad crea incertidumbre y podría representar un obstáculo al comercio. 
4.32.  Además de los desafíos en el sector agrícola, India debe enfrentarse con presteza a los 
siguientes retos: 
 Gran parte del progreso de India se debe al crecimiento de su población ya que anualmente 
más de 12 millones de personas entran al mercado laboral. Se espera que en 2030 cuente 
con la mayor fuerza de trabajo en el mundo. Sin embargo, India cuenta con complejas leyes 
laborales, las que debería simplificar así como  reducir las barreras al empleo formal e invertir en el sistema educativo.   
 Por la naturaleza propia de su geografía, las necesidades de infraestructura son cada vez 
más evidentes. Es crítico que la India aumente el gasto dirigido a la infraestructura para promover la actividad económica y que agilice los procedimientos para la aprobación de proyectos de inversión.  
 Sería necesario simplificar el entorno empresarial, reduciendo las cargas administrativas y 
regulatorias y aumentando la previsibilidad de los regímenes de comercio e inversión. En particular, debe prestar especial atención a los complejos y largos procedimientos para 
adquirir tierras y para la creación de empresas, los que dificultan la iniciativa empresarial, la 
inversión y el crecimiento.  
4.33.  De acuerdo con la Secretaría de la OMC, la contribución del sector manufacturero disminuyó 
al 13% del PIB. Con la promoción de la inversión extranjera y la reducción de barreras, India 
podría impulsar su crecimiento industrial y manufacturero, algo imprescindible debido al elevado número de personas que se incorporan a la població n activa cada año, a la limitada capacidad del WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  sector de los servicios para absorber la mano de obra poco calificada y a la saturación en la 
capacidad de absorción de la agricultura.   
4.34.  Antes de concluir, queremos agradecer las respuestas de India a nuestras preguntas y citar 
un proverbio indio que dice que "la más larga caminata comienza con un paso". México está 
convencido que aunque aún hay un largo camino por recorrer, India está avanzando con pasos 
firmes y constantes en la dirección correcta.  
SWITZERLAND 
4.35.  The strengthening of India's economic growth in recent years is a very welcome 
development. We congratulate India on this success in a challenging environment.  
4.36.  A range of measures have been taken by India's new Government aimed at contributing to 
enhanced growth. As examples, we would like to mention the introduction of an e-business portal 
and the liberalization of some sectors for FDI. We would like to commend such steps and 
encourage India to pursue on its path towards greater openness of its economy. 
4.37.  Today, India is Switzerland's most important trading partner in South Asia and third largest 
trading partner in Asia. In 2015, our bilateral trade in goods reached 21 billion Swiss francs and 
bilateral economic relations continue to be expanded.  
4.38.  Switzerland is also the 10th largest foreign direct investor in India. Today, some 200 joint 
ventures and subsidiaries of Swiss companies are op erating in India in fields such as engineering 
and industrial equipment, services (such as tourism, finance, and logistics), precision instruments, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. Swiss companies employ a workforce of roughly 100'000 persons in India.  
4.39.  We are pleased to observe an increase of Indian direct investments in Switzerland in recent 
years. Today, more than 100 Indian companies are present in Switzerland, among which many active in ICT and life sciences sectors.  
4.40.  The potential to further increase our bilateral economic exchanges remains, however, 
important. In this context, Switzerland, together with its EFTA partners, is engaged in free trade negotiations with India. 
4.41.  On the occasion of this TPR, Switzerl and has raised a range of topics in its written 
questions. Let me highlight the following issues:  
4.42.  Switzerland welcomes recent improvements of India's Intellectual Property System. 
However, considerable degrees of legal uncertainty persist, notably when it comes to protect test 
data submitted for regulatory approval of phar maceuticals and agricultural chemicals against 
disclosure and reliance by third parties. We would like to recall the obligation to protect test data against unfair commercial use pursuant to Article 39.3 TRIPS. Adequate protection of intellectual 
property and effective mechanisms for enforcement are in our view essential to attract and expand 
knowledge-based and innovative industries in India. 
4.43.  India's subsidies reforms are promising. Switzerland in particular welcomes the reforms in 
fossil fuels subsidies. These changes do not only lead to a more efficient use of public funds but 
also support important climate change objectives. We encourage India to pursue its subsidies reforms in support of sustainable growth. 
4.44.  A considerable source of uncertainty for traders are India's varying tariffs, duties, taxes and 
other charges. Simplifying this complex system  would have positive effects on trade and 
investment.  
4.45.  Finally, let me recall that WTO is faced with critical challenges this year. Will Members be 
able to implement the TF-Agreement? Will they succeed in moving the Doha round towards 
conclusion? We look to India, in particular as one of the key players in this house, to help making the Ministerial Conference in Nairobi a success. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  CANADA 
4.46.  I thank Mr. Rajeev Kher, India's Commerce Secretary, and join others in commending India 
for its recent economic performance as reflecte d in positive ratings provided by Moody's and 
Standard & Poor's. This fact was in evidence during Prime Minister Modi's recent visit to Canada, 
during which our business community expressed strong interest in mutual cooperation and 
expanding trade and investment.  
4.47.  Noteworthy changes have included India's recent regulatory reforms to its investment 
policy, again as noted in the Chair's introduction.  
4.48.  I would add, however, that India has also pursued a number of policies that still call into 
question its support for open markets and international trade. These include a relatively complex tariff structure, unpredictable rules favouring domestic supply, and – notwithstanding increased 
efforts to enhance infrastructure – structural bottlenecks that continue to impose limitations for 
importers and exporters alike. The new Foreign Trade Policy of India should highlight more that imports are crucial for the development and expansion of India's manufacturing sector and thus to 
overall economic development. 
4.49.  Admittedly, India's continued development depends on its capacity to address challenges 
stemming from social and economic inequality. While India's average annual per capita income 
was just under US$1,200 in 2013 – placing it among the poorest of the world's middle-income 
countries – it varied state-by-state: from almost US$3,500 in Delhi to just under US$600 in Uttar Pradesh, a State with a population almost the same as Brazil, and more than five and a half times the population of Canada.  
4.50.  Regarding India's infrastructure deficit, currently valued at almost US$1 trillion, bilateral 
investment treaties can help facilitate opportunities for further participation by foreign business in this area. Of note, Canada and India are currently in the final stage of negotiating process of 
finalizing their Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement. Canada is seeking an 
agreement which will provide greater assurance for investors, enhanced predictability and a favourable environment for further Canadian investment opportunities in India. We are concerned 
that India has lower ambition in this regard and is unwilling to conclude an agreement with 
adequate investment protection standards. Canada takes this opportunity to encourage India to resolve to conclude an ambitious outcome in the negotiations and, in so doing, send the needed positive signal to investors. 
4.51.  A further area for improvement resides in be tter investment in health care and education for 
India to meet its economic and social development goals. The World Bank notes that less than 10% of India's working-age population has comple ted a secondary education, and the country is 
home to 40% of the world's malnourished children. While India has demonstrated its commitment 
to robust investment in this area, real incentives and the opportunity for further participation by foreign providers will be crucial. 
4.52.  We recognize the importance of India in glob al agriculture and the continuing central role of 
agriculture in India's economy and society. We, of course, do not take issue with the Government's policy objectives: to promote domestic production, increase agri-investment, improve productivity 
and sustainable agriculture, and enhance value –a dded production. The Government also seeks to 
promote the use of modern technologies such as bulk handling, cold chain storage and efficient 
transportation. But as Secretary Kher noted, while al most half of India's population is engaged in 
agriculture, the sector only contributes 20% of the GDP. Thus, future growth is contingent on 
increasing agricultural productivity and efficiency  to ensure reasonable returns and food security. 
Improved investment in this area is needed and a pragmatic approach to foreign investment in this sector could be a "win-win".  
4.53.  Canada appreciates India's recent efforts to improve its notification record under the WTO 
Committee on Agriculture. In particular, we are grateful for India's submission in September 2014 of a domestic support notification covering the years 2004 to 2010, which has allowed Members to monitor more effectively the evolution of India's agricultural domestic support. In view of India's 
role as a leading global producer, importer, expo rter and subsidizer of agricultural products, WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  Canada would strongly encourage India to make further efforts to bring its notifications fully up to 
date as Australia has already said.  
4.54.  We note that mainly due to increases in agricultural tariffs as Ambassador Conejos said, the 
simple average applied MFN tariff has in fact increased since the last Review. Of particular concern 
to Canada are increases in tariffs for cereals, and preparations thereof, oilseeds and fats. We 
encourage India to reconsider these tariff increases.  
4.55.  Regarding India's bilateral and plurilateral trade policy agenda, India is currently negotiating 
FTAs with many partners. High quality trade and investment agreements can contribute to India's 
economic development, and improve its capacity to resolve a range of ongoing economic issues. 
We encourage India to further engage not only in bilateral and regional initiatives, but equally multilateral trade negotiations to further expand international opportunities for India's exporters, 
importers, and consumers. We look forward to India's positive engagement on concluding our work 
programme on the remaining Doha Round issues.  
4.56.  Finally, returning to the overall business environment, notwithstanding the current 
Government's efforts we have seen limited improvements. Though its ranking and overall score on 
the corruption perception index has markedly improved, it remains an ongoing issue in the market. India's rank on the "Ease of Doing Busi ness Index" remains low and is reflected in the 
relatively slow pace of Canadian firms taking advantage of the opportunities available in the 
country. We hope that measures such as the recent reduction in business registration fees, reforms aimed at protecting minority investors, and, in particular, the recent reduction of the time it takes to obtain construction permits signal further improvements to come. The eventual 
approval of the long-pending Goods and Services Tax Bill would be a positive sign that such 
improvements will happen.   
4.57.  We prepared a series of questions and we  are studying India's responses. We wish the 
Indian delegation success with this trade policy review. 
HONG
 KONG,  CHINA 
4.58.  Hong Kong, China (HKC)'s close relationship with India has a long history. It dates back to 
the 1840s, when our city started being home to ma ny Indian families. Over the years, members of 
the Indian community have made significant contributions to Hong Kong's economic and social development, and have helped us establish important institutions like our first university. 
4.59.  Today, India is Hong Kong's 7th largest tr ading partner. Our bilateral trade has grown at an 
average annual rate of 7% between 2010 and 2014, reaching US$24.5 billion last year.   
4.60.  India is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. HKC, as a long-time friend and 
trading partner, looks forward to fostering even  closer and more dynamic trade and economic 
relations between the two economies. 
4.61.  India itself also has an ambitious Foreign Trade Policy. The one in April this year, for 
instance, aimed at making India a significant participant in world trade by 2020. We encourage 
India to keep its trade environment stable and transparent, and its import and export policy 
regime simple and predictable, as we believe these are crucial to achieving its trade policy objectives. 
4.62.  We are pleased to note that since the last review, India has adopted a self-assessment 
system and a risk management system to improve its customs procedures. Currently, around 80% 
of the consignments are cleared without interventi on by Customs. We commend India's efforts and 
initiatives in facilitating trade and encourage India to continue its efforts in this aspect. As 
Members look forward to the Trade Facilitation Agreement coming into force by MC10, we hope 
very soon India can also join us in filing its Ca tegory A notification and ratifying the Agreement.  
4.63.  We note with concern, however, that India is one of the most active users of anti-dumping 
(AD) measures among WTO Members. Being also a ta rget of AD actions, India would probably be 
well aware of the negative impact of the trade remedy measure on the exporting economy. While 
we respect Members' legitimate rights in this regard, we encourage India to exercise caution and WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  due restraint, and to conduct thorough reviews to ensure that measures are taken only if they are 
fully justified and not used for protectionist purpose. 
4.64.  Since 2011, India's average MFN tariff for non-agricultural products had increased from 
8.9% to 9.5%. Those for agricultural products are substantially higher, at 36.4%. The considerable 
gap between applied and bound rates means that fu rther increase is possible. Moreover, the tariff 
regime remains complex. Importers are required to pay an additional duty and a special additional 
duty. We encourage India to lower its applied tariff rates, enhance tariff predictability, and simplify 
its tariff regime.  
4.65.  Regarding agricultural products, apart from the high tariff protection, there are also price 
support schemes. Indeed, most central government subsidies are for agriculture. India has also initiated a new support scheme through the National Food Security Act 2013 aiming to provide 
food grains procured by the Government at subsidized prices to around two-thirds of the 
population.  
4.66.  While recognizing that the agricultural sector, which accounts for around 56% of India's 
total workforce, is critical for achieving India's policy objectives of food security and price stability, 
we encourage India to step up its efforts in liberalizing its agricultural sector. We also encourage India, as a key player in agriculture negotiations, to help advance the negotiation process and 
secure a fruitful outcome. 
4.67.  The services sector, as the main driver of  economic growth, accounts for more than half of 
India's GDP. To promote further liberalization, th e Indian Government has undertaken regulatory 
changes, such as raising foreign equity limit in insurance to 49% and allowing foreign direct 
investment in certain railway transportation services. We welcome these initiatives, and encourage 
India to further review its restrictive market-access conditions, with a view to removing the limits on foreign ownership. 
4.68.  Finally, I would like to thank India for its re sponse to our written questions. I would also like 
to commend the very capable and dedicated Ambassador, Ms Anjali Prasad for her active participation in the WTO and her readiness to engage in constructive dialogues. We look to India to 
contribute to successful outcomes at MC10 in the Doha Round negotiations.  
COLOMBIA 4.69.  Para el período del examen la economía  de India ha tenido un acelerado crecimiento 
económico, alcanzando tasas del 7% de crecimiento promedio. Este ha sido impulsado 
principalmente por el sector servicios que entre el 2011 y el 2014 aumentó su participación en el 
PIB del 54,6% al 57%, destacándose especialmente las exportaciones de servicios informáticos, de telecomunicaciones y otros servicios prestados a las empresas.   
4.70.  A pesar de los buenos resultados en los indicadores económicos, así como los esfuerzos de 
la India para mejorar su competitividad y posicionarse como un gran exportador mundial, aun se perciben problemas estructurales, y una alta interv ención gubernamental y protección de la oferta 
interna que generan un ambiente comercial complejo y difícil de predecir para los agentes 
económicos.   
4.71.  El informe recoge, entre otros factores, el uso recurrente de medidas comerciales como 
subvenciones, impuestos a las exportaciones, pr ecios mínimos de exportación, licencias a la 
importación y ajustes en sus aranceles. Sobre este punto, es motivo de preocupación para nuestro 
país el anuncio reiterado del Gobierno Indio del otorgamiento de subvenciones a la exportación 
para el sector azucarero, que va en contravía de los compromisos adquiridos por nuestros países 
en la reunión Ministerial de Bali. 
4.72.  En materia de comercio exterior, tal como lo indica el informe de la Secretaría General, las 
exportaciones crecieron en un 25% para el período del examen y han estado compuestas 
principalmente por petróleo y minerales, piedras y metales preciosos, textiles y productos 
químicos. Las importaciones por su parte crecieron un 22% y se puede apreciar una alta concentración de las compras igualmente de petról eo y minerales que alcanzan el 42,3% del total. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.73.  La reciente caída en el precio internacional del petróleo ha ayudado a cumplir las metas de 
inflación. Sin embargo, hay que tener en cuenta que la inestabilidad en los precios puede traer 
repercusiones a futuro dado el peso significativo dentro de sus importaciones. 
4.74.  En materia de atracción de inversión extr anjera directa, resaltamos que India ha venido 
liberalizando sus políticas de inversión con resultados importantes, pues ha alcanzado promedios 
de inversión de 38.000 millones de dólares EE.UU. A pesar de lo anterior, los procesos de registro empresarial y de licencias son largos y complejos. Tomamos nota de programas como la ventanilla 
única de registro "eBiz" y "Make in India" que apuntan a corregir lo anterior. 
4.75.  Estos programas, sumados a otras iniciati vas como "Digital India" y "Skills India", las 
mejoras en la productividad agropecuaria, las formación para la creciente población laboral y la mejor orientación de la intervención económica estatal, facilitará cumplir las metas de crecimiento 
sostenido entre el 7%-8% para los próximos años. Se espera también que aumentará la 
participación del sector manufacturero dentro del PIB con una mano de obra más capacitada.  
4.76.  En cuanto a procedimientos y requisitos aduaneros, notamos que India ha venido realizando 
importantes esfuerzos para su racionalización, mediante la adopción de la autoliquidación para 
facilitar el comercio y el sistema de gestión de riesgos. Dado el destacado papel de India durante las negociaciones del Acuerdo de Facilitación del Comercio, confiamos en el pronto envío de su 
notificación de Categoría A y de su instrumento de ratificación. 
4.77.  Abonamos a su vez los esfuerzos que ha venido realizando la India en materia de propiedad 
intelectual mediante mejoras en la administración y observancia. Resaltamos también las mejoras normativas en materia de contratación pública para hacer un sistema más centralizado y acorde a 
las prescripciones del Acuerdo de Contratación Pública de la OMC del cual es observador.  
4.78.  Reconocemos el papel de la India en la OMC y esperamos seguir contando con su iniciativa 
y contribuciones para hacer viable la culminación de las negociaciones de la Ronda Doha. Éstas 
requieren del liderazgo de las principales economías del mundo, buscando un sistema multilateral 
del comercio más robusto y el desarrollo de un mercado global más competitivo y equilibrado. 
4.79.  Finalmente, le deseamos a la distinguida delegación de la India muchos éxitos en el 
desarrollo de éste examen de su política comercial y agradecemos la respuesta a las preguntas 
formuladas por nuestro país. 
ARGENTINA 4.80.  La India, como Miembro fundador de la OMC, está fuertemente comprometida con el 
sistema multilateral de comercio. Nos complace constatar que durante el período objeto de 
revisión la India continuó realizando esfuerzos y reformas estructurales para liberalizar y facilitar el comercio. 
4.81.  La economía india es una de las de mayor crecimiento en el mundo. El crecimiento 
económico se ha acelerado en los últimos años. En 2013-2014, el PBI real se incrementó 6,9% y para 2014-2015 se estima que el incremento será alrededor del 7,4%. Este crecimiento económico 
está impulsado por el sector de los servicios que representa más de la mitad del PBI de la India.  
4.82.  El déficit de la cuenta corriente ha decrecido significativamente en los últimos años llegando 
a 1,7% del PBI en 2013-2014. Ello se explica por la reducción del déficit del comercio de mercancías y por el aumento del superávit del comercio de servicios que en 2013-2014 fue de 
3,9% del PBI.  
4.83.  Desde la última revisión, la India ha continuado liberalizando sus políticas de inversión, 
incrementando el número de sectores en los cuales se permite la IED, reduciendo las restricciones 
sectoriales y elevando los límites de participación extranjera en algunos sectores como seguros y 
transporte ferroviario. También ha proseguido con la simplificación de los procedimientos aduaneros. 
4.84.  En cuanto a la estructura arancelaria, en el período 2014-2015, el arancel NMF promedio 
simple se incrementó a 13%, en tanto en 2010-2011 era del 12%. Ello se debió a un incremento WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  en los aranceles agrícolas. El arancel promedio  para productos agrícolas, que es 36,4%, es 
considerablemente más alto que el arancel promedio para productos no agrícolas (9,5%). Los aranceles consolidados son más altos que los aranceles aplicados, especialmente para muchos productos agrícolas. A ello hay que agregar que el sector agrícola es el destinatario de la mayoría 
de los subsidios gubernamentales.  
4.85.  Si bien la India es un firme defensor del sistema multilateral de comercio, los acuerdos de 
libre comercio son un elemento importante para mejorar el acceso de sus exportaciones a otros 
mercados y actualmente tiene 15 acuerdos en vigor, incluido el acuerdo con Mercosur que entró en 
vigor en 2009. 
4.86.  La relación bilateral entre la Argentina y la India se ha caracterizado por la existencia de 
vínculos amistosos y de objetivos convergentes en muchas esferas. El comercio bilateral ha 
registrado un fuerte incremento en los últimos quince años, alcanzando en 2014 los 2.618 millones 
de dólares EE.UU. El saldo del comercio bilatera l registró un superávit para la Argentina de 
1.222 millones de dólares EE.UU., totalizando exportaciones por 1.920 millones de dólares EE.UU. 
e importaciones por 698 millones de dólares EE.UU.  
4.87.  Entre los productos exportados a la India en el año 2014, se pueden mencionar los 
siguientes: aceite de soja (72,6%); aceites crudos de petróleo (10,7%) y minerales de cobre y sus 
concentrados (5%). Estos tres productos representan el 88,3% del total de las exportaciones 
argentinas de ese año. Las importaciones argentinas desde la India se encuentran más diversificadas. Los cinco primeros productos son: motocicletas, productos laminados planos de hierro, cajas de cambio para vehículos, hilados texturizados de poliéster y colorantes ácidos. 
4.88.  Sin duda hay margen para que el comercio bilateral siga incrementándose y ambos países 
trabajan para conseguirlo. En ese sentido, destacamos que en noviembre de 2014, el Gobierno indio abrió el mercado para peras, manzanas y membrillos de origen argentino y que en diciembre 
de 2014 otorgó la primera licencia para importar manzanas provenientes de la Argentina. 
4.89.  La India y la Argentina comparten numerosos intereses en el ámbito multilateral y, en 
particular, en la OMC. Confiamos en seguir trabajando junto a la India en favor de un sistema 
multilateral abierto y basado en reglas. 
4.90.  Agradecemos las respuestas de la India a nuestras preguntas. UNITED
 STATES 
4.91.  India is an increasingly important trading partner for the United States with two-way trade 
recently crossing the US$100 billion threshold and an important expansion of two-way investment. 
As President Obama highlighted during his visit to India in January, our bilateral relationship with India is a "defining partnership of the 21st century". We see our economic relationship, including 
here at the WTO, as a priority in this partnershi p. As evidenced by the rapid expansion of India's 
trade with the United States and many other WTO Members, India's role as a leader within this institution is increasingly important, with ever increasing responsibility.   
4.92.  We have seen a positive recognition from the Indian Government that it can do more to 
attract foreign investment, and we are encouraged by a number of reforms being pursued with respect to taxes, land acquisition, and labour. There are encouraging signs that positive trade-specific reforms may be contemplated, including the drafting of the National Intellectual 
Property Rights Policy and recent public statements  by Prime Minister Modi calling for a stronger 
IPR regime.   
4.93.  We are also pleased that in March, the Indian Parliament passed a bill increasing the limit 
on foreign investment in the insurance sector. And in April, India published its new 5-year foreign 
trade policy, announcing new programmes aimed specifically at implementing the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement. In light of India's very di rect role in shaping the TFA, we look forward to 
hearing India's plans to complete timely ratification of the TFA and also to submit its Category A 
notifications.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.94.  The United States invites India to consider how additional steps to open the country's 
trading regime can help India harness the benefits of trade to drive up investment and create jobs. This would include significant, long-term reductions in agricultural tariffs, and removal of unjustifiable SPS and TBT impediments on agricultural imports, both of which can help address 
food price inflation; opening the retail sector and the e-commerce sector to increased foreign 
participation, which can contribute to improving supply chains and greatly reducing food wastage; and avoiding recourse to export restrictions, minimum export prices, and other measures that tend 
to exacerbate the problems associated with global supply. 
4.95.  Indeed, the critical role played by Indi a's ongoing economic reforms and market-opening 
measures in fostering inclusive growth, including in fields such as information and communications technology, is well documented. It is therefore disappointing to see recent actions taken by certain 
entities in the government that appear to chart a different course. For example, India has already 
adopted or is considering adopting policies that require private entities to source a significant amount of their purchases from manufacturers in India, as in the case of retail policies, or that 
require conformity assessment to take place only in India, as in the case of information and 
communications technology policies. India also maintains trade-distorting export incentives on manufactured goods in sectors where India is export competitive, like textiles and apparel. 
Maintaining these types of initiatives tends to evoke comparisons to trade-restrictive policies 
pursued in previous, poorly-performing periods of India's economic development, a trajectory we believe India wants to move away from. 
4.96.  The agriculture sector in India remains closed to many foreign products. Where exceedingly 
high tariffs do not make importation prohibitive, they foster an unpredictable trading environment 
inasmuch as India can change the applied tariff rates at a moment's notice. Furthermore, products often face obstacles in the form of SPS and TBT measures that appear to have no scientific or 
other justifiable basis under the WTO Agreements. In dia also provides a broad range of assistance 
to its agricultural sector, including credit subsidies, debt forgiveness, and subsidies for inputs. These subsidies lower the cost of production for India's producers, and have the potential to distort 
the market. In addition, agricultural producer s of 24 products benefit from the Government 
programme to purchase food products from fa rmers at minimum support prices. These policies 
distort domestic market prices and incentivize th e over-production of rice and wheat. Given the 
increasing concerns with food price inflation, and the growing needs of India's food processing 
industries, India's agricultural trade policy continues to do a disservice to consumers and 
producers in India. 
4.97.  India's economic growth continues to be le d by its dynamic services sector. As one of the 
leading benefactors among WTO Members of access to  services markets around the world, India is 
i n  a  u n i q u e  p o s i t i o n  t o  l e a d  b y  e x a m p l e  b y  a d o p t i n g  p o l i c e s  t h a t  c r e a t e  a n  o p e n  r e g i m e  f o r  services trade and investment. Yet, key sectors of India's own services market continue to remain 
closed or subject to significant limitations on foreign participation. Such policies will do little to help 
the Government's efforts to respond to significantly declining FDI flows over the past year. 
4.98.  As India's "Make in India" campaign make s clear, a strong and effective IPR regime is a 
critical component of attracting and retaining investment and achieving India's ambitious economic 
goals. Businesses in virtually all Indian industries can realize benefits through receiving strong 
brand and product protection, including throug h trademarks, copyrights, patents, and trade 
secrets. India's current IPR policies, administration, and enforcement, unfortunately, do not yet 
match this ambition. We welcome the development of a National IPR Policy, and have appreciated 
the opportunity that the drafters afforded to public comments. As the Indian Government reviews the recommendations of the IPR Think Tank, we recommend providing a new round of solicitation 
of public comments before the Policy is made final. 
4.99.  Finally, with regard to transparency, the United States commends recent steps taken by the 
Government of India towards improving the tr ansparency and effective functioning of its 
policymaking institutions. Last year's guidance from the Ministry of Law and Justice prescribing at 
least 30 days for public comment on new legislation is a step in the right direction, and we look 
forward to additional information on how this gu idance is being implemented across Ministries. 
Despite improvements, the United States continues to be concerned about the lack of 
transparency in many aspects of India's trade policy, including a disappointing performance in 
WTO notifications. This lack of transparency contribu tes to the difficulties of firms trying to invest 
in and trade with India, and is a key reason for India's low ranking in the World Bank's 2015 WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  "Doing Business" report. Implementation of a uniform, all-of government approach to the 
development of regulations would help address these concerns. 
4.100.  The United States appreciates the opportunity to engage in this dialogue, thanks India for 
responding to our questions, and looks forward to  further discussing India's trade policy regime 
with the delegation from India. 
SINGAPORE 4.101.  Singapore and India enjoy strong and longstanding bilateral relations. Our economic ties 
are also substantial. Since 2005, the India-Singapore Comprehensive Economic Cooperation 
Agreement has paved the way for the strengthenin g of economic ties between our two countries. 
Last year, bilateral trade totalled S$24.6 billion, making India Singapore's 12th largest trading partner. Singapore was India's 2nd largest investor, with a stock FDI of US$6.4 billion, a 7.4% 
increase over 2013. This business presence is re ciprocated by the existence of numerous Indian 
companies in Singapore spanning diverse clus ters from IT services to manufacturing.  
4.102.  We note with interest that India's services sector, a key contributor to India's GDP, 
achieved an impressive double digit growth of 11% last year compared to 2013. With improved 
connectivity through better multi-modal transport, greater growth in goods and services trade can be achieved. In this context, air transport connectivity can serve as a catalyst. It is our hope that 
greater air and maritime connectivity can be achieved between Singapore and India, through our 
bilateral Strategic Partnership which will be signed  this year. This will support greater bilateral 
trade, investment and people flows. Other services  sectors in India, such as the aviation support 
services and tourism, will also benefit.  
4.103.  According to the Secretariat's report, India's average MFN tariff rate has increased since its 
last TPR, while its complex tariff structure has persisted. We urge India to work towards simplifying and bringing down its average MFN tariff rate.  
4.104.  Trade facilitation could also help to boost trade through more efficient and standardised 
customs procedures. We therefore welcome India' s announcement of its intention to implement 
the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), includ ing through the establishment of the National 
Committee on Trade Facilitation and other initiatives aimed at simplifying customs procedures. We 
note that India is in the process of finalizing its categorisation of commitments under the TFA and look forward to India's ratification of the TFA as soon as possible.  
4.105.  On the regional front, we welcome the signing of the ASEAN-India Trade in Services and 
Investment Agreements which are expected to come into force this July. The Regional 
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is another key regional initiative where we are 
working closely together. We hope that India will play a leading role in pushing for its progress, 
which would help to deepen economic integration in the region. 
4.106.  At the WTO, we look to India to play a constructive role in advancing the multilateral 
trading system. As one of the major developing ec onomies, India's leadership, for example, in the 
timely submission of notifications, is important. India's role would also be critical in the delivery of 
a post-Bali work programme, as well as a successf ul MC10 in Nairobi. Our delegation looks forward 
to continued close cooperation with Ambassador Anjali Prasad and her team.  
REPUBLIC
 OF KOREA 
4.107.  It is notable that India's economy has again experienced continued growth through the 
period under review, with its real GDP expandin g by 6.9% in 2013-14 after a growth of 5.1% in 
2012-13. Specifically, I would like to applaud India's efforts to facilitate investment, foster 
innovation and enhance skill development with recent initiatives such as "Make in India", "Digital 
India" and "Skills India". 
4.108.  It is our hope, as recommended in the Secretariat report, that India will achieve sustained 
economic growth by pursuing further reforms, e ffectively addressing the challenges of improving 
infrastructure, and simplifying the business and the regulatory environment. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.109.  Over the years, India and Korea have developed stable and healthy economic relations. 
Bilateral trade volume between the two countries was less than US$1 billion in 1991 but grew to stand at over US$17 billion in 2013. Korea's direct investment to India has increased from just US$4 million at that time to US$541 million today. In addition, India's direct investment to Korea 
amounted to US$99 million in 2013. To be clear, these figures demonstrate a very close economic 
partnership that will continue to grow and develop in the future. 
4.110.  Korea has great expectations that economic cooperation between the two countries will 
continue to expand further, particularly in the areas of infrastructure, shipbuilding, maritime 
transport, aviation, electric power development and new energy industries as agreed at the summit held in May 2015. In particular, we are also committed to updating the India-Korea CEPA by June 2016 with a view to achieving both a qualitative and quantitative increase in trade.  
4.111.  Let me now turn to some areas of our particular interest and concern with respect to 
India's economic and trade policies and measures. 
4.112.  First, I would like to touch upon the conc erns over the complexity of the Indian tariff 
system. We note that the simple average MFN tariff rate rose to 13% in 2014-15, from 12% in 
2010-11. Moreover, effective tariff rates seem to remain high due to the imposition of various 
additional and special duties and charges. 
4.113.  In particular, the special additional duty  (SAD) imposed on imported goods is considered 
burdensome for companies operating in India. In this vein, these companies ask for the simplification of the procedures for the refund of the duty and then for the elimination of the duty itself as soon as possible. 
4.114.  Second, Korea welcomes the significant changes that were made to India's anti-dumping 
legislation during the period under review in order to be more aligned with the WTO Agreement. Taking due note that India continues to be a major user of anti-dumping measures, Korea has 
concerns that Korea could become among the main targeted countries. Given the additional 
burdens to exporters posed even by the initiation of anti-dumping investigation, it is our sincere hope that the Indian Government take a more prudent approach when initiating such anti-dumping 
investigations. 
4.115.  Thirdly and lastly, we commend the improvem ent of the transparency policies in India. We 
share, however, the concern that various technical regulations and standards in India may act as non-tariff barriers. It is our sincere hope that when introducing any new regulations, the Indian 
Government could provide a reasonable grace period in order for producers to enhance 
predictability and prevent unnecessary losses. One example that we collected from our companies in India is that the compulsory registration sch eme introduced by the Bureau of India Standard 
(BIS) in 2012 was unexpected and did not provide a sufficient period for foreign suppliers to meet 
the requirements in the scheme. Therefore, those suppliers were unduly restricted and the importation of their products concerned.  
4.116.  We are confident that India, as a key player  in the WTO, will continue to play an important 
role in helping not only strengthen the WTO multilateral trading system as a whole, but also advance the DDA negotiations.  
KENYA 
4.117.  Kenya is pleased to participate in the sixth Trade Policy Review of India. We take this 
opportunity to acknowledge that India is a key partner of Kenya particularly in the area of trade and investments. 
4.118.  We commend the Government of India for its continued efforts in liberalizing trade and 
implementing trade facilitation measures during the period under review. We also note that India has also taken further steps to implement structural reforms, which have contributed to 
accelerated economic growth in recent years. We encourage India to sustain the process of 
structural reforms in order to maintain the current positive trend of its economic growth and outlook.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.119.  The multilateral and recently regional trade agreements have played an important role in 
enhancing India's market access for its exports. According to the Secretariat report, already 15 agreements are currently in force while others are under negotiations. This demonstrates the important role regional trade agreements can play in complimenting WTO multilateral rules in 
liberalizing and boosting trade and investments.  
4.120.  The Report also reveals that agriculture is an important sector for India in terms of its 
contribution to GDP and employment. The conclusion of the DDA negotiations in agriculture in line 
with the Doha mandate will undoubtedly enhance the contribution of this sector to India's 
economic growth and development. This sector is also critical in achieving the objective of food security not only for India but also for many other developing countries like Kenya. In this connection, we look forward to working closely with India and other Members in finding a 
permanent solution on the issue of public stock holding for food security by MC10 in Nairobi. 
4.121.  Kenya and India enjoy a strong trade relation. Currently, India is the leading source for 
Kenya's imports. A bilateral trade agreement which was signed in 1981 is still in force and has 
been an ideal framework for trade and economic expansion between our two countries.  
4.122.  The 7th Session of the India-Kenya Joint Trade Committee was held in New Delhi in 
February this year during which the Committee revi ewed the progress of bilateral trade, explored 
new areas of cooperation and discussed ways to further expand trade, industrial and technical 
cooperation.  
4.123.  Finally we express our appreciation to India for its strong support for the multilateral 
trading system and for collaboration with Kenya particularly on issues of interest to developing 
countries in context of the current DDA negotiations.   
NEW
 ZEALAND 
4.124.  India is an important global economy and New Zealand expects that India's influence will 
only continue to grow. Its ambitious economic  development agenda has seen India capture 
considerable attention over the last year – the whole world has an interest in India's future.    
4.125.  India has benefitted from trade liberalization and structural reforms undertaken since the 
1990s. In this respect, New Zealand welcomed India's recent announcements of its intentions for 
further economic reforms. In particular, New Zealand would like to congratulate India on the steps that the government has taken to introduce a nati onwide GST. Implementing a GST is a significant 
undertaking, but one which should, with other co-ordinated reforms, facilitate development of a 
truly unified internal market and improve the business conditions for both domestic industry and 
foreign investment. In this context, New Zealand would see the lowering and simplifying of India's agricultural tariffs as a further necessary step on the road towards comprehensive economic 
reform. We would also encourage India to consider removing tariff rate quotas for milk powders, 
to help meet surging domestic demand for dairy. 
4.126.  New Zealand welcomes India's recently re leased Foreign Trade Policy, which sets out a 
strategic vision for India's relations with its trading partners and for lifting India's export 
capabilities. In the modern trading context, dominated by trade in Global Value Chains, increasing openness to imports is an essential component of being able to develop more competitive exports. Efficient border procedures, liberal services regimes and openness to foreign investment are also 
essential for achieving the goals set out in India's new Foreign Trade Policy. The negotiation, by 
India, of high quality regional and bilateral tr ade agreements would support India's goal – as 
expressed in its Foreign Trade Policy - to increase its share of global trade and "assume a position 
of leadership in international trade discourse". New Zealand looks forward to continuing to work 
with India to conclude the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership negotiations, which have the potential to establish a strategic trade relationship among many Asia-Pacific economies. 
4.127.  India is an important trading partner for New Zealand - our 14th largest trading partner in 
goods. There is also a significant and growing serv ices relationship that has placed India as New 
Zealand's second largest source country of intern ational students, a focus market for New Zealand 
tourism, and a significant information technology  partner. The New Zealand Government's India 
Strategy recognizes the strategic importance of India and the great potential that exists for the WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  relationship. There is substantial scope for our two countries to further strengthen our trade and 
economic relationship. 
4.128.  New Zealand and India launched bilateral FTA negotiations in 2010 and we were pleased 
last year when the Indian Government reaffirmed the priority that it attached to concluding an FTA 
with New Zealand. Reaching a comprehensive and high quality agreement remains a work-in-
progress, but New Zealand remains deeply committed  to that endeavour as it would allow our two 
countries to build a strengthened economic relationship and encourage partnerships and 
collaboration in areas of trade and investment that are important to both sides. 
4.129.  India plays an important role in the WTO as a large emerging economy and we look to 
India to use its influence to help build a consensus among key players on the way in which core Doha agenda issues can be successfully progressed. 
4.130.  New Zealand shares India's concerns about the danger of non-tariff measures becoming 
increasingly prevalent and we look forward to continuing to work constructively with India's authorities, including on SPS and TBT issues. As highlighted in New Zealand's questions, we 
applaud India's efforts to increase the transpar ency of the scientific basis upon which its SPS 
measures are founded, and we hope that India en gages constructively with members of the SPS 
committee who have raised concerns about import restrictions and conditions on certain products. 
4.131.  India's role as an advocate for an open, ru les-based, multilateral trade regime is vital to 
ensuring a global trading system that facilitates trade between Members and addresses prohibitive and expensive non-tariff and tariff barriers to trade. We look to India for its ongoing constructive engagement to this end, and for it to continue it s advocacy of the multilateral trading system. We 
will watch with great interest the progress of In dia's programme to improve the transparency and 
openness of its economy. 
OMAN 
4.132.  Oman has long historical and friendly relations with India, which is our neighbour in the 
Indian Ocean and an important trading partner of Oman. 
4.133.  We would like to congratulate India on its impressive economic development despite 
numerous challenges. The GDP growth of India in 2013-14 was 6.9%, and the growth rate for 
2014-15 is estimated at around 7.4%. These are high growth rates by any standard. In fact India's growth rates are among the highest in the world. It deserves high praise for this achievement. 
4.134.  A remarkable feature of India's economic gr owth is the performance of its services sector, 
which accounts for 57% of India's GDP in 2013-14. India has a surplus in its services trade, as 
against a deficit in goods trade. 
4.135.  Oman commends India on its remarkable progress in international trade. It is the 19th 
biggest exporter and the 12th biggest importer in  world merchandize trade. Its ranking is even 
better in world services trade. It is the 8th bi ggest exporter of services and the 10th biggest 
importer. India is thus a major player in world trade. 
4.136.  We are please d to note that India is taking steps to increase predicta bility in trade and 
investment regimes. This would be done through the simplification of business environment, elimination of overregulation, investment in infrastructure and education, and reducing sectoral restrictions on Foreign Direct Investment. All these are commendable initiatives. 
4.137.  India is a very active Member of the WTO. It is a strong supporter of the multilateral 
trading system. It is also an active participant in the Doha Round trade negotiations. We hope India will continue its active participation to fulfil the worthy objectives of the WTO of liberalization 
and expansion of world trade. 
4.138.  The Secretariat report reveals that India's import regime remains complex, especially its 
licensing and permits system. Also, its tariff structure is very complex with multiple exemptions 
which impacts predictability. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.139.  The delegation of Oman has some concerns about licensing and customs valuation of 
Oman's exports of marble to India. Paragraph 3. 49 of the Secretariat report and Table 3.9 thereof 
show that India's imports of marble are subject to  import license if the c.i.f. price is less than 
US$60 per square meter. Could India please clarify what is the WTO justification for this 
restriction? Secondly, once an import license is issued, shouldn't the duty be assessed on the 
declared transaction value, even if it is less than US$60, unless it is found to be untrue or inaccurate? What is the WTO justification for not assessing the duty on the transaction value? 
4.140.  We note that some 25% of India's tariff lines remain unbound. Further, the simple average 
of bound rates is the high figure of around 5%. Simple average of applied rates is a relatively low figure of 13%, but the gap between applied and bound rates is rather wide. 
4.141.  We hope India would consider steps to simplify its tariff structure and its import regime, 
which we consider to be important steps towards ensuring predictability. 
JAPAN 4.142.  Since the change of administration in 2014, the Government of India has implemented 
various policies in order to increase foreign direct investment to India, including launching the 
"Make in India" initiative and issuing the "Foreign  Trade Policy 2015 – 2020" this April. In addition, 
the Government is seeking to make its tax regime transparent and simple, for example, 
announcing that it would not impose the Minimum Alternate Tax (MAT) on foreign investors after 
April 2015. Some of India's municipal governments have also implemented measures to appeal to foreign enterprises, such as simplifying administ rative procedures and building infrastructure. 
Japan commends India's improvement of business and investment environments through these 
efforts, and hopes for further improvement.  
4.143.  However, structural bottl enecks still remain as  a barrier to achieving higher growth, 
including delays in project approval, difficulties in land acquisition, a weak transportation network 
and power supply, and strict labour regulations and skill mismatches. Japan hopes that India will 
promote further structural reforms and will achieve sustainable economic growth. 
4.144.  Now let me turn to trade policies. 
4.145.  Regarding the RTAs, the report by the Secretariat mentioned that 15 RTAs are in effect so 
far, including the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between Japan and the Republic of India which entered into force just be fore the previous TPR of India in 2011. India also 
continues its negotiations regarding other bilateral and plurilateral agreements, such as the 
Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) which was negotiated with 15 other 
Members including Japan. Japan hopes that these RTAs will contribute to maintaining and strengthening the multilateral trading system. 
4.146.  With regard to the WTO, since the esta blishment of this Organization, India has been 
contributing to the development of the multilateral trading system as a major Member with a large volume of trade both in goods and in services. It has been also taking a role as a core member of 
various negotiation groups such as the G20 and the G33. India's position in world trade is 
becoming increasingly more important as its population is projected to become the largest in the world in the near future. 
4.147.  Considering current discussions toward  the establishment of the Post-Bali Work 
Programme as the last chance to conclude the DDA negotiations, Japan has been pro-actively 
committed to this crucial process. As we have less than two months to go to the deadline, the responsibility of major Members is becoming graver than ever. Japan is looking forward to 
cooperating with all WTO Members, including India, to establish the Post-Bali Work Programme. 
4.148.  In addition, Japan reiterates the importan ce of submission of Category A commitments and 
acceptance of the instrument in a timely manner towards the entry into force of the TF Agreement 
which is one of the vital elements of the Bali Package.  
4.149.  Finally, regarding the ITA, India issued a notification to remove the import tariff after 
March 2015 applicable to digital cameras covered by the agreement. Japan welcomes the WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  notification and is closely monitoring the enforc ement of the notification by the Government of 
India. 
4.150.  Now, let me touch upon other concrete items. These include trade remedy measures and 
TBT. 
4.151.  First, India is one of the most active users of anti-dumping measures among WTO 
Members, according to the report by the Secretariat. India initiated 82 anti-dumping investigations against 23 trading partners in total from 2011 to 2014. It initiated 18 investigations on safeguard 
measures as well during the same period. 
4.152.  Japan believes that trade remedy measures should not be abused as protectionist 
measures. Regarding India's measures, in previous WTO meetings including the SG Committee, Japan has raised concerns about frequent use of these measures and consistency with the WTO 
Agreements. Japan requests India to fully consider strict requirements stipulated by the WTO 
Agreements, and to ensure the consistency betw een India's trade remedy regimes and measures, 
and the WTO agreements, through its various reforms and other endeavours. 
4.153.  Second, Japan raised a specific trade concern in previous TBT committee meetings on 
technical regulations about pneumatic tires and tubes for automotive vehicles which were introduced by the Indian government in May 2011. We requested India to explain about the bank 
guarantee fee per plant being required only for tire manufacturers outside India, and the Indian 
Standards Institute (ISI) marking fee, as well as to shorten the time needed for certification procedures. Japan hopes that India will improve this situation in a swift manner. 
4.154.  In addition, Japan also hopes for further improvement of India's technical regulations 
about electronics and information technology goods,  such as expediting testing and registration 
procedures. 
GUATEMALA 
4.155.  Guatemala e India han mantenido relaciones cordiales y amistosas a lo largo del tiempo. 
Nuestros países establecieron relaciones diplomáticas a finales de la década de 1970 y recientemente acordaron la apertura de misiones diplomáticas permanentes en cada una de sus 
capitales. De igual forma, la participación activa y el apoyo proporcionado por la India en el marco 
del Sistema de Integración Centroamericano (SICA)  ha constituido una vía de gran importancia 
para estrechar nuestros lazos, tanto a nivel bilatera l como regional. A la fecha, se han realizado ya 
varios foros India-SICA e India ha proporcionado apoyo al Banco Centroamericano de Inversión 
económica (BCIE) para el financiamiento de pr oyectos en áreas como agricultura, pequeñas y 
medianas empresas y energía renovable. 
4.156.  Nuestra balanza comercial se ha caracterizado por el intercambio de productos 
manufacturados, tales como productos farmacéuticos, vehículos, hilos e hilazas y máquinas y 
aparatos mecánicos. Con el fin de explorar las oportunidades comerciales entre ambos países e incrementar el intercambio entre ambos mercados, una misión comercial conformada por 
empresarios guatemaltecos de diversos sectores, viajó a principios de este mes a India. 
4.157.  En relación con la evaluación que hoy se realiza sobre la política comercial de India, 
consideramos muy positivas las medidas emprendidas para la liberalización de sus políticas de inversión, así como los esfuerzos por reducir el déficit fiscal en los próximos años y la 
implementación de nuevas medidas en materia de facilitación del comercio. Consideramos también 
que serán retos importantes en el futuro cercano pa ra la India, entre otros, la implementación de 
medidas que permitan afrontar los estrangulamientos estructurales a los que hace referencia el 
informe, así como continuar fortaleciendo el sistema de contrataciones públicas. 
4.158.  Guatemala reconoce los esfuerzos realizados por India durante el período estudiado en 
este informe. Agradecemos las respuestas a las preguntas planteadas en el marco de este 
examen. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  PHILIPPINES 
4.159.  The Philippines fully associates itself with the ASEAN statement delivered by Malaysia. 4.160.  The positive developments in India's econ omy bid to transform India as one of the driving 
forces of global economic growth. The impact is expected to be profound as there will be direct 
political, economic and strategic implications for India and the entire Asian region. 
4.161.  By history and trade, India has been a lo ng-time partner of the Philippines shortly after 
both countries gained independence. The relation s between the two countries have been cordial, 
though the full potential is yet to be realiz ed. The Philippines therefore welcomes greater 
integration with India.  
4.162.  Economic relations had been relatively slow  and uneven at the start but the impact of the 
ASEAN-India FTA in Goods is already being strongly felt. Further increase is expected with the 
signing of the ASEAN-India Trade in Services and Protection of Investment Agreements that will 
come into force in July this year. The internal market demand and domestic consumption of India have a direct and positive impact to the Phili ppines in terms of job creation, investment and 
balance of trade, particularly in business process outsourcing, textile, and steel. The Philippines 
and India's complementarities, rather than competition, particularly in the IT sector could therefore bring forth heightened collaborations.  
4.163.  The Philippines also welcomes India's initia tives in facilitating the integration of micro, 
small and medium enterprises in global trade. It is  worth noting that during the recently concluded 
APEC MRT meeting in Boracay, Philippines, one of  the notable outcomes was the Boracay Action 
Agenda for Micro Small and Medium enterprises. In  the said meeting, DG Azevedo also recognized 
the importance and relevance of the said land mark MSME agenda thereby encouraging APEC 
members to brief all WTO Members on this particular work. 
THE
 SEPARATE  CUSTOMS  TERRITORY  OF TAIWAN,  PENGHU,  KINMEN  AND  MATSU 
4.164.  Two points on India's economy that st and out in particular in the Reports are the 
remarkable dynamism of Indian businesses an d the average annual GDP growth of 6 to 8% 
achieved consistently by India over recent years. We congratulate India on the benefits it has 
reaped from continued trade liberalization and structural reforms since the 1990s. We are 
convinced that it will continue on this pa th of impressive growth in the future.   
4.165.  The trend in bilateral economic rela tions between India and the Separate Customs 
Territory of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen and Matsu re flects the dynamism of the Indian economy. 
India is currently our 19th largest trading partner in goods, with US$5.9 billion of two-way trade in 
2014. As India opens up its markets, seeks to promote exports, and creates a climate for investment, we fully expect our economic and trade relationship to strengthen and grow. 
4.166.  I will now turn, if I may, to areas of India's economic and trade policies where certain 
measures are of particular interest or concern for us. Firstly, regarding its tariff regime, the Secretariat report describes an extremely complex tariff system with regular modifications of the 
applied tariff, as well as additional countervailing duties, and customs and excise duties, which is 
quite complex and confusing for importers. We would encourage India to review and simplify its tariff structure in order to provide more stable and predictable access to its market for our businesses and producers.  
4.167.  Secondly, we welcome India's continued efforts to streamline its customs procedures and 
implement trade facilitation measures. However, its import regime remains complex, especially the licensing and permit system. We therefore encourage India to continue its efforts to facilitate trade 
in this regard. 
4.168.  Thirdly, we share the concerns of other Members that various TBTs and SPSs of India may 
be acting as non-tariff barriers, thereby unduly restricting importation of the products concerned. 
We would particularly draw the attention of the Indian Government to these issues. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.169.  Fourthly, on contingency measures, we note that India is one of the most active users of 
anti-dumping and safeguard measures. Unjustified actions of this type can have a major negative impact on the exporting economy in question. We would therefore encourage India to take a more 
prudent approach when initiating anti-dumping actions or safeguard investigations, so that such 
measures do not constitute a systemic barrier to trade. 
4.170.  Last, but not least, as we all know, transparency and predictability in a Member's trade 
policy regime are crucial for traders and investors.  In this respect, we welcome the recent steps 
taken by the Government of India towards foreign direct investment. We note, however, that there 
are still several sectors where such investment is either limited or subject to specific caps and conditions. Hopefully, India's consolidated FDI policy will lead to greater stability and predictability for foreign investors, which are essential to attracting the foreign investment that could underpin 
critical infrastructure projects and continued growth in other key sectors, such as 
telecommunications and financial services.  
4.171.  India is, of course, an important economic and trading partner for us and many others in 
this room. As the latest IMF global forecast predic ts, India's GDP growth rate will be above that of 
other BRICs countries in 2016. Within the next 15 years, it will have the largest and one of the youngest workforces in the world. I am convinced that if India, like many other countries, 
continues to open up its economy and this economic openness is reflected within the WTO legal 
system, it will reap the benefits of staying on the path to a brighter future of economic growth and 
macroeconomic stability for years to come. 
4.172.  India is certain to play a major role in  the global economy policy decision-making in the 
future. We look forward to working constructively with India, along with other Members, in our 
shared commitment to the multilateral trading system. 
NORWAY 
4.173.  India is an original Member of and a key player in the WTO. If we are to succeed in the 
DDA, India's active and constructive role in the negotiations will be necessary and decisive. India is also engaged in regional trade initiatives and we look forward to progress in the negotiations 
with the EFTA-countries. 
4.174.  Norway welcomes the Government of India's New Foreign Trade Policy, which was 
presented on April 1st. It is indeed encouraging to note that the World Trade Organization will continue to be India's preferred instrument for negotiating trade agreements, and we note with 
satisfaction the ambition for India to further open up its economy and become a leading global 
proponent of trade liberalization. However, as othe rs, we note with concern the widespread use of 
anti-dumping measures, and would encourage fossil fuel subsidies reform. 
4.175.  We also appreciate that the Government of  India recognizes that the greatest obstacles to 
India's growth, development and competitive participation in the global economy are to be found in the country itself. Besides policy and regulatory improvements, there is a great need for large 
investments in physical infrastructure and human resource development. While the private sector 
will continue to play an important role, the fact remains that no country has successfully modernized and industrialized without significant large-scale public investments in infrastructure, primary education and basic health care services - accessible to all members of society, including 
the poor. To these ends, we would encourage India to contemplate how to dramatically increase 
public revenues, including through modernizing its tax regime. We thus look forward to the forthcoming Goods and Services Tax reform. 
4.176.  We note with satisfaction that India ha s unilaterally reduced applied tariffs on certain 
commodities and would encourage this to continue, including to remedy the trade distorting effects of preferential trade agreements. In some instan ces, preferential trade agreements can undermine 
India's economic growth and development by de facto excluding suppliers of certain commodities, 
thus reducing competition, leading to higher prices for Indian buyers.   
4.177.  India's relatively strong performance in the services sector is well known. The services 
sector already accounts for more than half of In dia`s GDP and is the main driver of economic 
growth. The regulatory changes which have been introduced in financial services, WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  telecommunications and transport are therefore of  great importance. Investment and development 
of manufacturing and agriculture are often in vain without the support of proper and effective services.  
4.178.  On relations between Norway and India, let me briefly mention that merchandise trade is 
still relatively meagre and constitute not much more than 1% of total Norwegian trade. There is 
huge potential, however, not least in the trade of seafood and services. Equally important is the fact that more than 100 Norwegian companies are established in the Indian market. They 
represent maritime, chemical, information technology companies, as well as oil and gas industries 
– and we see a trend towards diversification.  
4.179.  Let me also add that the Norwegian Pension Fund Global by the end of 2014 had invested 
in India an amount close to about US$8.5 billon. These investments include equity investment in 
more than 200 Indian companies. A transparent and open investment regime in India will 
contribute to increased activities by the Fund. 
4.180.  Let me finally refer to the questions we submitted prior to to-day's review. We will study 
the responses from India. In particular, we are keen to see India's follow-up on the Trade 
Facilitation Agreement. India was an active and hard negotiator in the TF negotiations, and has clearly welcomed the resulting text of the agreement. We have also noted that India has flagged 
that it would only use the two first categories of implementation for developing countries, namely 
A and B. However, contrary to many other countries, India has yet to submit its Category A list. We would urge that India submits its list as early as possible and joins the drive towards TFA's entry into force by January 2016.  
INDONESIA 
4.181.  Indonesia would like to associate itself with the statement made by Malaysia on behalf of 
ASEAN. We are pleased to be here today for partic ipating in the Trade Policy Review of one of the 
key players in the WTO. We appreciate India's contribution in the WTO forum, and we believe that 
India has a strong commitment to ensure a successful Post-Bali Work Programme and conclude all the remaining DDA negotiations. 
4.182.  Furthermore, we note positively that India's economic growth has been accelerating in 
recent years. The Government of India has also succeeded in controlling inflation and the current account deficit that could have hampered further growth. We are somewhat concerned with the structural bottlenecks that pose as a barrier to achieve greater growth. However, we have 
confidence in the Government's efforts to address these problems through investment in 
infrastructure and education, simplification of the business environment, as well as increasing 
predictability in trade and investment regimes. We encourage the Government of India to continue 
to do so. 
4.183.  On the bilateral side, India is indeed a very important partner for Indonesia. In the last five 
years, our trade balance has grown at an average of 3.77%, reaching US$16.2 billion in 2014. We 
have seen a slight decline in trade between 2013 and 2014, however, we are certain that trade will 
bounce back once the ASEAN-India Trade in Services and Investment enters into force on 15 July 2015. Furthermore, Indonesia and India are also currently negotiating RTAs, both bilaterally and within the framework of the Re gional Comprehensive Economic Partnership. 
4.184.  As such, we remain confident that our countries' economic partnership will continue to 
grow in the future. 
4.185.  Nevertheless, Indonesia would like to note some of India's trade policies that undermine 
the legitimate interest of our exports to India. These, among others, include India's tariff system 
that is quite unpredictable. This is further exacerbated with India's complex import licensing procedures and restrictions. India's use of trade remedies is also quite excessive. All of these 
measures, both in tariff and non-tariff forms, are potentially more restrictive to trade than 
necessary. 
4.186.  In this regard, Indonesia has submitted a num ber of specific questions to clarify individual 
points on these and other issues. We thank the delegation of India for answering our questions, WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  and we will study those responses with great interest. We will seek further clarification if 
necessary. 
EUROPEAN  UNION 
4.187.  India's real economic growth has been acce lerating in the recent past and is expected to 
be around 7.4% in 2014-15. According to the In ternational Monetary Fund and the World Bank, 
India might soon become one of the fastest growin g economies in the world. These are really good 
results for which the government can be applauded.  
4.188.  The EU welcomes and looks forward to Indi a's implementation of its stated goal to make 
its policies more business and investor friendly. This is detailed in India's report and I would like to mention for example the following objectives: "to make India's foreign trade regime more open and transparent", "creating a roadmap for reform", "rationalising subsidies", creating an "investor 
friendly FDI policy", "creating a predictable and clean tax policy environment."  
4.189.  India still faces significant challenges to achieve these ambitious and laudable goals. Allow 
me to mention a few: infrastructure for transportation and power supply; predictability and 
transparency of the legal framework and in particular of the rules governing trade and investment, 
taxation and public procurement; developing a business-friendly environment in general including by such measures as reducing mandatory conformi ty assessment requirements; proportionality of  
SPS measures; avoiding local content requirements that hinder India's further integration in global 
value chains; substantially reducing peak tariffs and avoid increases in import duties that actually undermine the Government's objectives.  
4.190.  The EU commends India for its efforts developed in the recent years. I will highlight a few 
examples: opening up FDI in sectors such as in surance, medical devices and defence; India's 
intentions to modernize its tax system by introducing the Goods and Services Tax (GST), an effort to speed up procedures in the investment sector. In addition, India embarked on reviewing its IPR 
and government procurement policy, which are important initiatives on which the EU has offered 
to share experience. The EU takes account of th e adoption of the recent India's Foreign Trade 
Policy document which sets the goal to double the value of Indian exports within four years. This 
would certainly require rationalising the existing incentives and subsidies, shaping a coherent 
approach at bilateral, regional and multilateral level.  
4.191.  The EU trusts that India will engage co nstructively in discussions on the post-Bali work 
programme with a view to finalising the DDA, and that India will contribute to the shared objective 
of ensuring the entry into force of the Trade Facilitation Agreement by MC10. In this regard, we 
are interested to hear about India's plans rega rding the ratification of the Agreement and we 
continue to eagerly await India's notification of its Category A commitments. 
4.192.  The EU is the first destination of India's exports and is the first source of inward stocks of 
foreign direct investments in India. India is the first beneficiary of EU GSP. To give you a sense of proportion, last year India was granted by the EU a preferential tariff on 41% % of its exports. 
However, India is far from fulfilling all its potential in terms of trade and investment with the EU. 
The EU continues to look forward to engage India in order to enhance our bilateral trade and investment relationship. 
4.193.  In its advanced written questions, the EU has addressed several areas of concern that I 
already mentioned and which are reported by the Secretariat in its report such as: import 
procedures/import bans that are regularly raised in the Import Licensing Committee; local content 
requirements issues raised in the TRIMs Committee; the disproportion of certain measures 
compared to the objectives sought; the impact of subsidies on the fairness of competition and 
trade/on the fiscal deficit, the importance of notifications to the WTO and transparency of measures; and the insufficient consultation of stakeholders prior to adopting regulations. 
4.194.  The EU trusts that the meeting will be useful to all of us here and wishes India a very 
fruitful TPR. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  CHILE 
4.195.  En desarrollo de este ejercicio de revisión de las políticas comerciales, el Gobierno de Chile 
ha formulado nueve preguntas que han sido respondidas. 
4.196.  India y Chile mantienen relaciones diplomáticas desde 1947. Son casi 70 años de un 
enriquecedor trabajo continuo y multifacético, en el campo político, comercial y cultural.  
4.197.  Chile considera a India como un socio comercial de gran importancia. Desde la última 
oportunidad en que se realizó el examen de las políticas comerciales de India - en el año 2011- se 
han profundizado las relaciones entre nuestros países que se basan en el Acuerdo de Alcance 
Parcial (AAP) vigente desde el 17 de agosto del 2007. 
4.198.  En el año 2014, el comercio bilateral con India tuvo un alza de 14% con respecto a 2013. 
Esto representó un importante superávit comercial para Chile, el mayor de los últimos siete años. 
Las exportaciones se expandieron un 21%. 
4.199.  Si bien, y tal como se menciona en el informe de la Secretaría, se trata de un Acuerdo 
limitado a un número reducido de productos con preferencia fija, al mismo tiempo ha permitido 
que aproximadamente un 90% de las exportaciones chilenas e indias obtengan una rebaja 
arancelaria promedio de un 20% desde el momento de su entrada en vigencia.  
4.200.  Todo indica que esta relación se irá pr ofundizando a futuro. En efecto, a fines de 2014 
ambos países hemos acordado poner en marcha un proceso para la ampliación de la actual 
cobertura de productos con preferencias arancelarias del Acuerdo de Alcance Parcial, que también considera una profundización en materias relativas a Reglas de Origen, Medidas Sanitarias y Fitosanitarias y Obstáculos Técnicos al Comercio. 
4.201.  Esta ampliación permitirá a ambos país aumentar la cobertura del acuerdo desde 474 a 
más de 2.800 líneas arancelarias. A diferencia del acuerdo original, el proceso de profundización contempla márgenes de preferencia arancelaria entre un 80% y 100%.  
4.202.  Por lo tanto, para Chile es de gran interés concretar cuanto antes la firma de dicha 
ampliación. Será un primer paso que permitirá, entre otros avances, estar en condiciones para 
alcanzar un Tratado de Libre Comercio.   
4.203.  En éste, el sexto examen de políticas comerciales de la India, además de las preguntas 
formuladas, y que como hemos dicho, ya han sido respondidas, me permito hacer algunos comentarios sobre algunos aspectos que se derivan de los informes presentados a los Miembros: 
 Chile valora las perspectivas y las medidas qu e ha tomado la India para revitalizar su 
economía, con acento en acelerar el crecimiento, potenciar la inversión y hacer llegar los 
beneficios a la población, tal como lo menciona el informe de dicho país para este examen.   
 Las prioridades planteadas por el Gobierno, en torno a desarrollar las infraestructuras, 
establecer una hoja de ruta para reformas, promover la facilidad para hacer negocios, 
potenciar la inversión, entre otras, nos parecen de gran importancia. Del mismo modo, valoramos la creciente función que el comercio exterior está desempeñando en el desarrollo 
económico de la India, que revela una creciente integración a la economía mundial.  
 Vemos positivamente que la India ha seguido esforzándose por liberalizar y facilitar el 
comercio, por ejemplo instaurando la autoevaluación en los procedimientos aduaneros, y eliminando las prescripciones en materia de comercio de Estado aplicables a algunos 
productos agropecuarios. Así como los esfuerzos en hacer reformas estructurales, como la 
eliminación de los controles del precio del gasóleo y la flexibilización de las restricciones a la inversión extranjera directa en algunos sectores. 
 Se destaca el gran motor que representa el sect or servicios, más de la mitad del PIB de la 
India, y la serie de medidas que está tomando el Gobierno en la materia.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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   Deseamos que India tenga avances positivos en las reformas y desafíos que se ha planteado 
el Gobierno en sectores como agricultura y seguridad alimentaria, manufacturas, desarrollo de infraestructura, entre otros.  
 En agricultura entendemos la gran sensibilidad del sector, y el hecho que el aumento de su 
productividad sea uno de los principales objetivos de política del Gobierno. Asimismo 
valoramos la legitimidad de los objetivos de seguridad alimentaria. Sin embargo, nos preocupa la protección arancelaria y la considerable ayuda otorgada al sector, que puede 
tener un impacto sistémico.  
 Asimismo, miramos con preocupación la forma y aplicación de ciertas políticas comerciales y 
otras medidas mencionadas en el reporte de  la Secretaría, que pueden representar 
restricciones al comercio, como:  
o la estructura arancelaria compleja y la gran diferencia existente entre aranceles 
aplicados y consolidados, sobre todo en el sector agrícola. Diferencias que reducen la previsibilidad arancelaria.  
o Las prohibiciones, licencias y restricciones a la importación. 
o Las prohibiciones y restricciones a la exportación. 
4.204.  Todos reconocemos la condición de la In dia como "key player" en el comercio y la 
economía mundial. Ello significa no sólo un reconocimiento objetivo de su realidad, como una de 
las mayores economías a escala global, sino también de la responsabilidad sistémica que le cabe en el entorno internacional, como Miembro fund ador de OMC. En particular, el rol que le 
corresponde jugar en las negociaciones para concluir la Ronda de Doha.  
4.205.  Chile está consciente y comprende, asimismo, los desafíos que enfrenta la India en 
términos de desarrollo, políticas sociales, seguridad alimentaria y otros aspectos de una compleja realidad interna. 
4.206.  En el contexto descrito y con visión prospectiva, esperamos que la India pueda contribuir 
al proceso en el que estamos comprometidos desde el lanzamiento de la Ronda Doha. Y en el marco de los acuerdos de Bali, haga un sustantivo aporte para la elaboración de un Plan de 
Trabajo que permita avanzar hacia la conclusión de Doha, y entrar en Nairobi en una nueva etapa 
para el multilateralismo comercial, abordando los temas de futuro de los que debemos hacernos cargo como organización. 
4.207.  Finalmente, permítame hacer una mención particular sobre unos hechos que consideramos 
emblemáticos en nuestra relación, que históricamente va más allá de los importantes vínculos 
comerciales: 
4.208.  La India ejerció una gran influencia en nuestros dos premios Nobel de Literatura, ambos 
poetas: Gabriela Mistral y Pablo Neruda. 
4.209.  En 2012, en Nueva Delhi, se presentó la prim era traducción al hindi de parte de la obra de 
Gabriela Mistral, incluyendo veinte poemas de la antología "Ternura" acompañados por una serie 
de dibujos realizados por niños indios que ilustran la publicación.  
4.210.  La cultura india, en particular de autores como Rabindranath Tagore y Aurobindo, tuvieron 
una gran influencia sobre la obra de Gabriela Mistral, quien decía que debía mucho a la India porque había descubierto la música en la poesía de Tagore, y en Aurobindo la religión. 
4.211.  Por otra parte, el año pasado, en las escuelas públicas de la capital, de Bengala y 
Maharashtra, se comenzó a distribuir gratuitamente el libro "Poemas de Neruda para niños", que contiene una docena de poemas de las "Odas elementales" y del "Libro de las preguntas" del 
premio Nobel chileno, traducidos por primera vez al hindi, bengalí y maharathi.  
4.212.  Dicho lo cual, habiendo hecho esta referencia, solo me resta desearle a la India mucho 
éxito en este su sexto examen de política comercial. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  BRAZIL 
4.213.  My Delegation gives the highest importance to engaging in the sixth Trade Policy Review of 
India, a nation with which Brazil – despite the geographical distance between us – has forged very close ties in the international arena. The relationship between our diverse societies is firmly 
premised on shared core values such as democracy, rule of law, social inclusion and a strong 
commitment to development in all its dimensions. 
4.214.  India has been one of the most active and committed Members of the WTO. Together, our 
two countries have worked over decades to promote the cause of developing countries and, since 
2001, towards a meaningful development-oriented conclusion of the DDA. In facing the challenge of bringing needed change to and redressing unjustified imbalances in the Multilateral Trading System, Brazil has had in India a most appreciated and valuable partner.    
4.215.  As in previous TPRs, we are pleased once again to congratulate India for its consistently 
impressive economic performance during the period  under review. If it continues to keep this 
pace, India will confirm forecasts that place it as the third largest GDP in the world by 2030.  
4.216.  The Indian Government has given clear indication, as stated in its report, of its 
commitment to overcoming the country's structural bottlenecks as well as extending economic benefits across all social strata. A wide set of  initiatives was already announced for financial 
inclusion, health, the education of girls, youth employment, tax administra tion, investment and job 
creation, increasing agricultural productivity an d farm incomes, and improving the ease of doing 
business, just to mention a few. Brazil greatly commends and identifies itself with India on the ultimate underlying objective of these reforms: improve the quality of life for the common citizen. 
That is also the fundamental purpose of all of our national public policies. 
4.217.  Brazil also welcomes India's initiative to  develop a National Policy on Intellectual Property 
Rights. The comprehensiveness of the draft version recently released, as well as the decision to 
submit it for comments from interested stakeholders, shows the commitment of the Indian 
Government to reaching out to its society on all IP-related areas.  
4.218.  Almost ten years ago, Brazil and India decided to upgrade their bilateral relationship to 
form a Strategic Partnership aimed at harnessing the significant convergence of interests and the 
growing international projection of both countries. The bilateral agenda has been dynamic, spanning cooperation initiatives in science and te chnology, defence, culture, education, energy, 
space and environment. 
4.219.  These days, the relationship Brazil-India is intense in the political, trade and economic 
realms. The two countries also cooperate intensely in many international organizations such as this WTO, the UN, WIPO, ITU, UNCTAD and international groupings, such as the G20, the BRICS, the 
G4, IBSA and the BASIC, and the IBSA. We have ac tively worked together for the needed reform 
of global governance. In July 2014, Brazil was honoured to welcome a visit by Prime Minister 
Narendra Modi, in the context of the 6th BRICS Summit, which created the BRICS New 
Development Bank and the BRICS Currency Reserve Arrangement. 
4.220.  Growing trade reinforces and reflects this very positive moment in our bilateral relations. 
The figures are quite significant: two-way trade grew from a modest base of US$484 million in 2000 to US$11.4 billion in 2014, an increase of ov er 2000%. In 2014, India was ranked as the 8th 
destination market for Brazilian exports, which we re largely composed of crude petroleum, sugar 
and soya oil, and totalled US$4.8 billion. India's exports to Brazil, on the other hand, amounted to 
US$6.6 billion comprising mostly fuels, organic chemicals, machinery, synthetic and artificial 
filaments and pharmaceuticals. In 2014, India registered a surplus of US$1.85 billion in its trade in 
goods with Brazil.  
4.221.  As meaningful as these figures may be, they should be viewed with a grain of salt. Not 
only is our trade obviously modest in light of the size of our economies, but also between 50-60% 
of exchanges is concentrated in petroleum and di esel. It is evident that our two countries share 
the challenge of trade expansion and diversification. We need to incorporate more value-added and higher technological content products in our b ilateral trade. Brazil is certain that there is WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  ample potential to deepen and intensify investment flows and trade in goods and services with 
India. 
4.222.  Before concluding, we thank the written replies to our questions and look forward to 
additional responses. They address issues such as certain aspects of agricultural trade, as well as 
trade facilitation and customs procedures. They will be forwarded to Brasilia for examination and 
follow-up as appropriate. 
RUSSIAN  FEDERATION 
4.223.  The Russian Federation and India have a long history of friendly relations which have 
always been featured by broad, deep, robust and progressing bilateral cooperation across vast economic, trade and investment areas. Throughout  recent years, our bilateral trade turnover 
continues to demonstrate a certain upward trend, resulting in the volume of US$9.5 billion in 
2014. We have no doubt that the two countries have a great potential to further enhance bilateral 
trade in goods and services and increase the flow  of investments. Annual Russia-India summits are 
a good illustration of non-stop dialogue to e nhance economic and trade interaction between the 
two countries. 
4.224.  Russia shares a positive overall assessment of the economic policies pursued by the Indian 
authorities. India has managed to secure the continuous growth of its economy during five recent 
years, and we pay tribute to the growth forecast for 2014-2015 at around 7.4%. We are confident 
that this growth will contribute to the successful implementation of Indian social programmes and will stimulate further liberal reforms in diffe rent spheres of its fast-growing economy.  
4.225.  Nevertheless, we would like to highlight some trade and investment measures of India, 
which, from our point of view, need to be clar ified. Russia has submitted a number of questions 
regarding SPS-related standards, state trading en terprises, customs administration and credit 
policies in agriculture. We thank the Indian delegation for the replies provided.  
4.226.  In addition, we would like to present a follow-up comment with regard to India's 
agriculture support measures listed in paragraph 4.16 (page 101 of the Secretariat's report). It says that the central Government supports the State Governments in their efforts to increase 
agricultural production, enhance productivity by providing technical support, including through 
certain credit schemes which comprise a number of government programmes to improve the flow of credit to agriculture and to lower the cost of borrowing for farmers (via below-market-rate loans or debt write-offs). We would appreciate if the Indian side could specify the conditions of debt 
write-offs for farmers, and percentage of export credits that are usually not returned? 
REPÚBLICA
 DOMINICANA 
4.227.  La República Dominicana comparte lazos de amistad con India, como miembro ambos del 
G33. Asimismo, agradecemos los interesantes comentarios del ponente, el Embajador Esteban 
Conejos de Filipinas. 
4.228.  En este sexto examen de su política comercial, deseamos felicitar al Gobierno de India, ya 
que tal y como lo indica el informe de la Secretaría de la OMC, durante el período objeto de 
examen, la India ha seguido esforzándose por liberalizar y facilitar el comercio, haciendo avances en la autoevaluación en los procedimientos aduaneros y eliminando las prescripciones en materia de comercio de Estado aplicables a algunos productos agropecuarios. La India también ha seguido 
haciendo reformas estructurales, como la eliminación de los controles del precio del gasóleo y la 
flexibilización de las restricciones a la inversión extranjera directa (IED) en algunos sectores.  Asimismo, se han hecho esfuerzos para simplificar el régimen tributario, liberalizar la economía, 
impulsar la inversión para el mejoramiento de la infraestructura y aumento de la productividad. 
4.229.  El crecimiento económico de la India se ha acelerado en los últimos años, y sigue siendo 
impresionante, dada la situación de crisis económica mundial en la que nos encontramos, llegando 
el crecimiento del PIB a 6,9% en 2013-2014 con estimaciones de que alcanzará el 7,4% en 
2014-2015. Este crecimiento económico es impulsado mayormente por el sector de los servicios.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.230.  Para atraer inversión extranjera directa, la India ha ido aplicando diversas medidas, como 
aumentar gradualmente el número de sectores en los que está permitida y reducir las restricciones sectoriales. También ha seguido liberalizando sus políticas de inversión, en particular elevando los límites a la propiedad extranjera en algunos sectores, como los seguros y el transporte por 
ferrocarril.  
4.231.  También, la India ha seguido racionalizando sus procedimientos aduaneros y aplicando 
medidas de facilitación del comercio. Con ese fin, en 2011 se adoptó la autoliquidación en sus 
procedimientos aduaneros y alrededor del 97,6% de las importaciones de la India se tramitaron 
mediante el sistema de gestión de riesgos.  
4.232.  Asimismo, Desde el último examen, la India ha adoptado varias iniciativas para modernizar 
la administración de los derechos de propiedad intelectual y continuó haciendo esfuerzos para 
imponer su observancia. En 2012, la Ley de Derecho de Autor se modificó, entre otras cosas, para 
poner en aplicación el Tratado de Derecho de Autor de la OMPI de 1996 y se publicaron directrices sobre las patentes para el material biológico.  
4.233.  En el sector agrícola, vemos con simpatía los programas de seguridad alimentaria en el 
marco de la Ley de Seguridad Alimentaria Nacional de 2013 para proporcionar cereales alimenticios, comprados por el Gobierno a precios subvencionados, a alrededor de dos tercios de la 
población, lo cual representa una importante ayuda tanto para los productores pequeños de bajos 
ingresos como para la población de escasos recursos.  
4.234.  El sector de servicios representa más de la mitad del PIB de la India, y como dijimos 
anteriormente es el principal motor del crecimiento económico. Se han hecho modificaciones 
reglamentarias positivas (que afectan sobre todo a los servicios financieros, las telecomunicaciones 
y el transporte), como la implementación del programa para el establecimiento de filiales 
bancarias de propiedad total, el aumento hasta el 49% del límite a la participación de capital 
extranjero en el sector de los seguros, la modificación de las principales leyes relacionadas con los 
valores, la adopción de la Política Nacional de Telecomunicaciones de 2012 y la decisión de permitir IED en el transporte ferroviario, exce pto en la explotación de los ferrocarriles.  
4.235.  Todos estos progresos contribuyen al desarrollo económico y humano de la India.    
4.236.  La República Dominicana ha presentado algunas preguntas a India, en relación a las 
medidas tomadas para facilitar el comercio, así como a las alzas en los aranceles, entre otros; y agradecemos las respuestas presentadas las cuales vamos a estudiar con detenimiento.  Para 
terminar, solo nos queda exhortar a la India para que siga encaminando sus pasos por la senda 
del progreso, y les deseamos muchos éxitos en este sexto examen de política comercial y en el futuro. 
COSTA
 RICA 
4.237.  Costa Rica is a firm believer of the Multil ateral Trading System, and as such, we see in the 
Trade Policy Review exercise a transparency mech anism to strengthen the role of the WTO, and 
through open dialogues like this, the Members ca n benefit from the recommendations, testimonials 
and best practices of others. 
4.238.  We have seen how India has evolved into a more services oriented economy. We wish to 
congratulate India for its continuous and steady growth in the sector, which represents more than 
the 50% of the country's GDP and 35% of its export s. India has succeeded in the expansion of its 
services sector by improving the competitiveness of its skilled labour; setting an example in this area for other developing countries. Costa Rica shares with India a similar perspective on the 
importance of services, and considers it a key driver of economic growth. And in that sense, we 
believe that further liberalization and improved transparency in services could lead to expanding its already successful exporting capacity. 
4.239.  Regarding investment, Costa Rica recognizes India's success in the attraction of FDI flows, 
especially in the telecommunications and services sector (financial, banking, insurance, business, outsourcing, R&D, courier and technical). From the Trade Policy Review, we have learned that, just like Costa Rica, India's foreign trade policy has also been focused on strengthening trade and WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  investment relations, as well as encouraging the establishment of new enterprises that will 
contribute to diversify the supply of goods and services, technology transfer and global value 
chains. However, we take this opportunity to encourage India to continue with its efforts towards transparency and non-discrimination of foreign investors. 
4.240.  For Costa Rica, the Trade Facilitation Ag reement holds a pivotal place within the system 
and as such, we encourage India to deliver the Category A commitments in a timely manner. We also welcome the latest notifications provided by India and look forward to future updates to more 
recent years on issues such as tariff quotas, safeguards and domestic support which would 
strengthen the transparency and predictability of  the notification process. We also see very 
positively the reforms that the Indian Government  has been undertaking to tackle the structural 
bottlenecks that attempt to delay development and we encourage India to continue its efforts to 
increase growth through policies that allow for a more predictable tariff system. 
4.241.  Finally, we are aware of the enormous e fforts that the reviewed Member must put to 
attend all questions submitted, and in that se nse we thank India for the answers provided and 
commit to look in depth to their feedback. 
THAILAND 4.242.  Thailand would also like to associate itse lf with ASEAN's statement previously delivered by 
Her Excellency Ambassador Mariam MD Salleh of Malaysia.   
4.243.  India and Thailand have a long-standing re lation. During the past five years, India has 
been Thailand's number one trading partner in South Asia, with an average trade value of US$8.2 billion per year with an annual average gr owth of over 12%. In 2014, our bilateral trade 
value stood at US$8.7 billion, a decline of 0.37% from the previous year. India also ranked as our 
11th export destination and 18th import source. In contrast, Thailand is currently ranked as India's 28th export destination, and 24th import source. We do note that our bilateral trade has slowed 
during the past several years, but fundamentall y strong relationship will certainly aid the 
enhancement of these statistica l numbers in the near future. 
4.244.  Despite the decline in trade figures, Thailand and India have actively and continuously 
furthered our trade and investment relations which have enabled the two countries to sustain 
positive bilateral trade and investment climate despite the slow-down of the global economy. Indeed, the Minister of Commerce and Industry of  India, Her Excellency Mrs Nirmala Sitharaman, 
has just paid a visit to our Minister of Commerce as recent as this past Friday, to exchange views 
on trade and investment as well as discuss ways to further strengthen our economic relations, 
following the Thai Minister of Co mmerce's official visit to India earlier this year in February.  
4.245.  In light of our cordial bilateral trade and investment relations, Thailand would like to add 
that it has always been appreciative of the ASEAN-India Free Trade Agreement and the Early 
Harvest Scheme under the Thailand-India FTA wh ich has been effective since January 2010 and 
September 2004, respectively. 
4.246.  In terms of investment, India continues to increase its investment in Thailand, investing 
over US$60 million in 2014. While the value of investment is not quantitatively spectacular, it is my sincere belief that the pace will pick up significantly in the near future as the ASEAN-India Trade in Services and Investment Agreements are expected to be implemented in July this year, 
coupled with the two parties' continued efforts to enhance the ASEAN-India connectivity, especially 
through the Trilateral Highway Project that w ill link India, Myanmar, and Thailand.  
4.247.  In the multilateral trading system, Thailand  is grateful for India's contributions to the 
system, not only in terms of the substantial efforts that India has put into the negotiation in 
various forums, but also its continued endeavour to liberalize and facilitate trade, such as through the enhancement of customs procedures and the relaxation of foreign direct investment 
restrictions in numerous sectors. Such actions and commitments are indeed valuable to all WTO 
Members, and, with India's considerable influence, Thailand has no doubt that India will play a key 
role in providing the positivity and flexibility needed to move the WTO negotiations forward. In this connection, we do look forward to intensive and constructive negotiating work in the WTO to WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  achieve a meaningful work programme by July and the successful tenth Ministerial Conference this 
year. 
4.248.  The TPR reports indicated that India's econom y, with its vibrant expected growth, is one of 
the few bright spots in the global economy. It is nevertheless my sincere belief that this would not 
be possible without the country's proactive approach towards liberalization and regionalism in its 
overall trade policy nor its determination to address various obstacles towards higher growth such as the enhancement of business environment, tr ansparency, and predictability of trade and 
investment regimes. Thailand certainly supports these constructive efforts as they will without 
doubt contribute positively to multilateral trading system. 
4.249.  In this review, Thailand has submitted se veral questions to India covering the policies and 
measures of our interests regarding among other things, India's investment policies, import 
prohibition, domestic support, and the price su pport scheme. We are thankful for the responses 
provided by India prior to the meet ing, and Thailand will certainly study them in detail with great 
interest. 
4.250.  In conclusion, Thailand would like to express its appreciation to the Indian delegation from 
New Delhi for today's presentation and responses to our questions. We are thankful for the close cooperation with India in every level, includin g that between our Geneva-based delegations.  
TURKEY 
4.251.  It is certainly not an easy task to comma nd such a big and diverse country and one of the 
biggest democracy on Earth. India has its own strengths and challenges, and those unique dynamics make India one of the most important emerging powers of the 21
st century. 
4.252.  Since its last trade policy review, India has recorded high growth rates, which is expected 
to reach 7.4% in 2015 and thus make India the fa stest growing economy in the world. The 7.5%, 
growth figure announced last week for the first trimester of 2015 is supporting this expectation. 
Moreover, during the review period, incoming FD Is stood at an annual average of US$30 billion, 
while India's exports increased by more than 25%. 
4.253.  Despite this good economic performance, gr owth is mostly driven domestically, and largely 
by services sectors, with modest contributions from investment and exports, as described by a 
recent World Bank Report.1 
4.254.  With an agricultural sector accounting for 56% of the total workforce and producing 18% 
of the GDP, on the one hand, and rural poverty that stands at 25.7% on the other, the main 
challenge before the Indian policy makers is certainly to alleviate rural poverty, promote human 
development in rural areas, and diversify economy towards manufacturing industries. I strongly believe that more liberalization in trade and investment promise important opportunities for this 
purpose. 
4.255.  Likewise, some important domestic reforms are also needed, as stated in the Government 
Report, to overcome some very important structural bottlenecks and to benefit from big production 
and trade potential of India. Especially, education seems to be the most critical reform area in 
order to accomplish the long-term development goal of the country. 
4.256.  On the other hand, medium and short term reforms require a more reliable transport and 
power-supply infrastructure. Cutting red tapes is also necessary for a business friendly 
environment to boost investments and trade in manufacturing sectors. Actually, India ranks the 
179
th place among 189 countries in the World Bank's Doing Business ranking for starting business. 
This position is mainly due to confusing and time-consuming investment licence procedures, which 
is not an encouraging environment especially for foreign investment. However, recent steps taken 
by the Government within the framework of the "eBiz" and "made in India" initiatives would certainly contribute to the improvement of business environment in India. 
                                               
1 World Bank, India Development Update Report No. 95979-IN, April 2015. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.257.  During the review period, India has taken important steps to liberalize and facilitate trade 
through self-assessment in customs procedures and elimination of state-trading requirements for some agricultural products. India also eased FDI restrictions in many sectors such as pharmaceuticals, finance, telecommunication and transport. 
4.258.  However, India's import regime remains complex, unpredictable and trade-distorting due 
to its non-automatic licence and permit system for many products, which was also pointed out by Oman. TRQ and "minimum price" application to the import of marble by India, is a special source 
of concern for Turkey with respect to the development of bilateral trade. 
4.259.  India's tariff structure also remains complicated and reserves high spreads between 
applied and bound tariffs. The water between appl ied and bound rates together with significant 
changes in tariffs from one year to the other create unpredictability. Moreover, high level of tariffs 
in manufacturing products, standing at an average of 9.5%, goes up to prohibiting levels for some 
products. For instance, the average applied MFN tariff for motor vehicl es stands at 100%. 
4.260.  Another issue affecting the predictability of India's trade regime is domestic supply 
conditions of agriculture products. Food security concerns especially for poor rural population 
require India to use trade policy as a tool to regu late domestic supply through export restrictions. 
The unpredictable trade regime in agriculture is an impediment for long term production and trade 
planning. A balance needs to be found between supply security and a predictable trade regime. In 
this respect, I strongly believe that finding a pe rmanent solution to Public Stockholdings for Food 
Security Purposes within the Doha Development Ag enda would relieve India from the need to use 
trade policy as an immediate food security instrument and would provide a more predictable trade 
regime in agriculture. 
4.261.  On the bilateral side, Turkey and India, despite some ups and downs, have a strengthening 
trade flow which more than doubled during the revi ew period. However, we believe that this flow 
has to be further increased through more cooperation and liberalization to reflect the great 
bilateral potential. Despite Turkey's big trade deficit with India, India still benefits from Turkey's GSP scheme designed for developing countries. Under these conditions, we need and we are 
willing to further enhance our bilateral trade in a balanced and diversified way. 
KINGDOM
 OF SAUDI  ARABIA 
4.262.  The trade policy review reports of the Se cretariat and the Government of India highlight 
the continuous progress of the Indian economy in  the recent years in terms of GDP growth and 
trade expansion. Progress has been sustained even  in the face of the world economic crisis, the 
real GDP growth was 6.9% in 2013-14 and estimated to be around 7.4% in 2014-15.  
4.263.  Nevertheless, despite this impressive economic growth, India has been facing some 
structural challenges of an urgent nature, this in cludes reducing the fiscal deficit; developing the 
infrastructure; addressing the issues of ill-targeted subsidies, low manufacturing base and low agricultural productivity and weak transportation  network and power supply. These challenges are 
being addressed through several domestic reforms along with investment in infrastructure and 
education, improvement of the business environment,  trade facilitation and logistical facilitation 
reforms and increasing predictability in trade and investment regimes. 
4.264.  Open trade is clearly vital for India as it continues its development and growth. We note in 
particular the Government's objective of doubling In dia's share of global trade over the next five 
years through its new Foreign Trade Policy for 2015-2020. India is to be commended for its other recent initiatives such as "make in India", "d igital India" and "skills India"; promoting the 
diversification of India's exports; creating an ar chitecture for India's engagement with key regions 
of the world and encouraging a larger flow of effi ciency-seeking FDI with the aim of making India a 
hub in the supply chain process. 
4.265.  However, as the Secretariat report pointed out, some concerns exist regarding some 
aspect of India's trade regime such as the high level of trade remedy usage particularly anti-dumping measures. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia encourages India to these measures to ensure fair trade and enhance the competitive opportunities that should benefit all participants in WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  our international trading system. We have expressed some of our concerns regarding these 
matters in few questions to India. We will be happy to receive India's replies to these questions. 
4.266.  The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and Indi a are prominent trading partners, their trade 
relations go back several centuries in time. Today, the bilateral business ties are being steadily 
expanded and further strengthened by continuous interaction and cooperation. During the current 
year (2014-15), the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the 4th largest trading partner for India. The value of two-way trade between the two countries in 2013-14 exceeded US$48.62 billion. The import of 
crude oil by India forms a major component of bilateral trade. Saudi Arabia is the second largest 
source for market for India's imports. For Saudi Arabia, India is the 5th largest market for its exports.  
4.267.  The bilateral investment between the two countries is growing steadily. Since mid-2000, a 
number of Indian firms have taken advantage of the new Saudi laws and established joint venture 
projects or wholly-owned subsidiaries in the Kingdom in diverse sectors such as management and consultancy services, construction projects, telecommunications, information technology, 
pharmaceuticals, designing, financial services and software development. Saudi Arabia is one of 
the biggest investors in India.  
4.268.  As an original Member of the WTO, India is an active Member of this Organization and an 
active supporter of the multilateral trading system. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia looks forward to 
continuing to work with India and the rest of th e membership on the implementation of the Bali 
Package and the Post-Bali Programme.. 
ECUADOR 
4.269.  El Ecuador participa con gran interés en este Examen de políticas comerciales debido a que 
la India es un claro ejemplo de aquellos países en los que han sido evidentes los progresos obtenidos en materia de política comercial. Es así que en los últimos años los Miembros de esta 
Organización hemos constatado los esfuerzos que la India ha realizado en el campo de la 
liberalización y facilitación del comercio, así como los avances producidos en el ámbito de reformas estructurales, tan solo para mencionar un ejemplo, la flexibilización de las restricciones a la 
inversión extranjera directa, que permite la inversión en la mayoría de sectores a través del 
mecanismo de vía automática.  
4.270.  El Ecuador reconoce los objetivos que han sido planteados por el Gobierno de India en 
materia fiscal, tendientes a reducir el déficit fiscal al 3% para el bienio 2017-2018, así como la 
racionalización de los impuestos sobre bienes y servicios 
4.271.  De igual forma, registramos las medidas qu e tienen como objetivo afrontar los problemas 
estructurales a través de una mayor inversión en infraestructura y educación, la supresión de 
reglamentación excesiva, y el aumento de la previsibilidad de los regímenes de comercio e 
inversión. 
4.272.  En cuanto se refiere a los objetivos de política comercial, según la información que consta 
en el informe, mi delegación reconoce la nueva política para el quinquenio 2015-2020, que 
persigue elevar la cuota de exportaciones mundiales de la India al 3,5% a través de un sistema normativo duradero y estable para el comercio exterior de mercancías y servicios.   
4.273.  El informe de la Secretaría hace referencia a ciertas preocupaciones expresadas en la 
política comercial de la India. De manera específica, se habla de la contención de las fluctuaciones 
de los precios de los productos básicos, lo que co nlleva a un ajuste constante de sus políticas, con 
el consiguiente efecto en la falta de previsibilidad del régimen comercial y generación de costos 
adicionales.  
4.274.  Esperamos que esas medidas permitan alcanzar ese objetivo de corto plazo a fin de 
subsanar las preocupaciones expresadas sobre el régimen comercial de India.  
4.275.  Otra de las preocupaciones que se manifiestan en el informe se relaciona con el régimen 
de importación de la India, sobre todo por la complejidad en el sistema de concesión de licencias, permisos y estructura arancelaria. Alentamos al Gobierno indio a continuar racionalizando sus WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
- 42 - 
 
  procedimientos aduaneros y arancelarios incluso mediante la aplicación de medidas tendientes a 
facilitar el comercio. 
4.276.  De igual forma, el Ecuador desea expresar su reconocimiento a la India por la adopción de 
varias iniciativas tendientes a modernizar por un lado, la administración de los derechos de 
propiedad intelectual y vigilar la observancia de los mismos; y, por otro, medidas cuyo objetivo es 
aumentar de la productividad en el sector agropecuario, la estabilidad de precios y la seguridad alimentaria No obstante, se espera que la concesión de determinadas subvenciones, en el marco 
de esas iniciativas, sean notificadas de conformidad a las disposiciones multilaterales de la OMC.  
4.277.  Por último, y no menos importante, deseo referirme al sector de servicios, que constituye 
en la actualidad el principal factor del crecimiento económico de la India, pues representa más de la mitad del PIB de ese país. Digno de destacar son las reformas producidas en el sector de 
servicios financieros, telecomunicaciones, transporte y seguros.   
4.278.  Para concluir, deseamos anticipar nuestro agradecimiento a la delegación de la India por 
sus respuestas a las preguntas que hemos planteado sobre algunos aspectos de su política 
comercial y que han sido enviadas a la Secretaría, lo que proveerá de insumos importantes para el 
fortalecimiento de las relaciones bilaterales en materia de comercio exterior. 
TRINIDAD
 AND  TOBAGO 
4.279.  Trinidad and Tobago views India as a formidable force in the global economy and the 
Indian economy is an important trading partner fo r Trinidad and Tobago, which is reflected in the 
plethora of bilateral agreements and memorand a of understanding between our two countries. 
Politically, Trinidad and Tobago has an intimate relationship with India and the Prime Minister of 
Trinidad and Tobago and several Cabinet Ministers have paid official visits to India in order to 
solidify and bolster our countries relations. We see India as a market with potential for further development on a multi-dimensional basis, given that Trinidad and Tobago is among the most 
lucrative markets for Indian goods in the Caribbe an. In 2013, Trinidad and Tobago exported to 
India TT$ 11.8 million worth of goods, namely chem icals, liquefied natural gas, and iron and steel 
products. On the other hand, we imported light and heavy vehicles, car parts, pharmaceuticals, 
textiles and spices totalling TT$ 1.2 billion in that year. 
4.280.  With the balance of trade so disproport ionately in India's favour and growing, my 
Government is eager to broaden the level and scope of economic cooperation with India and, in that context, to move beyond bilateral trade to encompass and strengthen our investment links in 
the near future. In November 2011, Trinidad and Tobago and Indian convened the inaugural 
session of a Joint Commission established to promote economic, political and other spheres of cooperation. Please allow my delegation the opport unity of this forum to reiterate to our Indian 
colleagues the strong interest of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago to cement the 
understandings reached recently in our Joint Commission Meeting. 
4.281.  India is no stranger to the Caribbean region. The CARICOM-Indian Joint Commission on 
Consultation, Cooperation and Coordination was first established in 2003 in order to create a 
framework for enhancing CARICOM-India relations in various fora. This was quickly realised in 2005, when Foreign Ministers of India and CARICOM held an official meeting in Suriname to discuss matters of common interest including promotion of trade in goods, services and 
investments, greater participation by India in Caribbean infrastructure development and regional 
investment, the possibility of India's contributi on to the CARICOM Development Fund (CDF) to 
support economic activities with the CARICOM regi on and the prospect of India's membership of 
the Caribbean Development Bank that would engage India as a partner to co-finance development 
and integration projects in the region. Since that  Ministerial meeting many positive inroads have 
been made between CARICOM and India, which will be assessed shortly at the second 
CARICOM-India Joint Commission meeting this year, 2015. 
4.282.  Like Trinidad and Tobago, India is a very open economy with a high degree of dependence 
on international trade and thus susceptible to the volatility of the multilateral trading environment. Since its last review in 2011, the Indian economy ha s steadily developed to robust levels thanks to 
the consistent performance of the services sector that has contributed more than 52% to the 
Indian economy's GDP. My delegation notes the smaller and declining role of the agriculture sector WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  on the country's GDP, but is very mindful of that  sector's critical responsibility as the largest 
employer in the Indian economy, and any decline in  prospects of the agriculture sector would have 
a deleterious chain-effect on India's most vulnerable population living on the poverty line. Similarly, the declining share of the industry sector in its contribution to GDP is likewise noted with 
the concomitant negative employment and household income effects that can well be 
acknowledged. Nonetheless, my delegation was heartened to observe and compliment India on 
refraining from introducing new trade barriers in order to shelter its domestic manufacturing and 
agriculture sectors and to protect its export trade. 
4.283.  India's projected positive growth fo r 2014-15 confirms the competitiveness of the 
economy's services sector and trade in goods, which was brought about thanks to the steady 
liberalization and structural reforms, and as a consequence strengthened, accelerated and pushed 
the Indian economy forward. However, we agree wi th the WTO Secretariat that the complex tariff 
structure needs to be simplified. My delegation also urges for a relaxation of the non-tariff barriers currently in place. We believe India understands all too well the dangers, both short and long 
term, of continued trade restrictions on imports and urge for more predictability in trade policy as 
reflected in the effectiv e applied tariff rate. 
4.284.  Permit me to thank the delegation of In dia for their responses provided to Trinidad and 
Tobago's questions. 
NEPAL 4.285.  As a founding Member of the WTO, India has been a staunch supporter of multilateral 
trading system, and committed to uphold its fundamental values and principles. Being one of the 
largest and emerging economies in the present wo rld, India has a profound role to play in 
strengthening and further promoting multilateral trading system. The delegation of Nepal wishes 
to extend its appreciation to India for its consistent, constructive and solution-oriented 
engagement at the various forums in the WTO. In this regard, my delegation appreciates the 
constructive role being played by Ambassador Anjali Prasad as head of India's WTO delegation in Geneva. India's role as an active member of the G33 and as an individual member State, in 
pursuing negotiation on agriculture, NAMA and services, among other DDA issues, has been 
perceived by Members with a great deal of interest and curiosity. 
4.286.  The circulated reports reveal that India continued pursuing its efforts in liberalization and 
facilitation of trade for accelerating and sustaining its economic growth. India achieved real GDP 
growth of 6.9% in fiscal year 2013-14 and it is estimated to be around 7.4% in the fiscal year 
2014-15. As highlighted in the report, international trade is an important pillar of India's economic 
development with merchandise trade constituting around 44% of the country's GDP in 2013-14. 
During the four-year period under review ( 2010-11 to 2013-14), exports grew at a compound 
annual growth rate of 8%, while imports grew by 6.8%. India's share in global exports registered 
increase from 1.5% in 2010 to 1.7% in 2013. Its share in world imports increased from 2.3% in 
2010 to 2.5% in 2013. India's share in world servic es exports stands at 3.3% in 2013 and it is 
increasing faster than its share in world merchandise export. Due to robust and continuous reforms and increasing integration with both regi onal and global economies, India's total trade 
transaction, including both merchandise and services trade reached almost US$1 trillion in fiscal 
year 2013/14. This achievement, in the face of global contraction, is a clear evidence of India's 
growing share and influence in the global trade.  
4.287.  India has embarked on an ambitious reform  agenda to meet the challenges of spurring 
growth, creating jobs and improving the quality of life. The introduction of self-assessment in 
customs procedures, elimination of state-trading requirements for some agricultural products, 
eliminating price controls on diesel and relaxing foreign direct investment (FDI) restrictions in 
some selected sectors, among others, are some noteworthy initiatives put forth by India during 
the review period to give further boost to its ec onomy and trade. India's new five-year trade policy 
covering the year 2015 to 2020 encompasses various reform initiatives with an objective of raising its share of global exports by 2020. To achieve th is end, India is streamlining its policy and rules 
both in merchandise and services trade, linking them with other recent initiatives such as "make in 
India", "digital India" and "skills India" and other trade diversification and competitiveness enhancement programmes. In this connection, the proposed new Goods and Services Tax (GST) is 
supposed to facilitate India's growth and international trade further through streamlining its WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  various tax structures and ensuring more stabil ity, predictability and comfort in the business 
community.  
4.288.  India has always been supportive to LDCs trade and development efforts considering LDCs' 
low integration into the world market. In line with the Hong Kong Ministerial Declaration, India 
introduced Duty Free Tariff Preference (DFTP) sch eme in August 2008, and has been improving its 
coverage under it over the years. In this connection, effective from 1 April 2014, India's DFTP scheme has been providing duty-free market access  to LDCs on about 96% of its tariff lines and 
preferential duties on 2.2% of the lines. At pres ent, 31 out of 48 LDCs are benefiting from this 
preferential scheme. We appreciate this and enco urage India to take initiative to simplify the 
procedural matters including the Rules of Origin provisions of the DFTP Scheme in line with the Bali decisions in order to facilitate LDCs' export further. 
4.289.  During a high-level meeting convened in Fe bruary this year, India announced an attractive 
package of waiver ranging from waiving visa fee to improving market access, targeting LDCs services and services suppliers. In this regard, LDCs are waiting India's notification together with 
other preference-granting members by end July. We  are optimistic that India's notification will 
offer LDCs commercially meaningful preferences and set a good standard to be followed by other members. 
4.290.  A close neighbour, friend and longstanding development partner, India has been one of the 
strong supporters of Nepal's development endeavours. It is the largest source of FDI inflows in Nepal, which has helped in promoting industrialization and creating employment opportunities. Business and trade opportunities between the two countries are expected to grow following the 
recent signing of a power trade agreement which ai ms at effectively harnessing and utilizing the 
rich hydropower potentials available in Nepal. 
4.291.  India is Nepal's largest trading partner accounting for about two third share of its foreign 
trade. The value and volume of both merchandise and services trade has been expanding over the 
years. India is the major export market for Nepa lese products occupying 65% share in the fiscal 
year 2013/14. The share of India in Nepal's total import accounted for 66.7% in the same year. 
Despite preferential trade arrangement, Nepal suffers a huge trade deficit with India due to 
structural weakness, low productivity and low competitiveness on one hand, as well as some 
procedural matters on the other, which can be improved, through diversification of activities, among others.  
4.292.  India is not only Nepal's major trading partner, but also a major transit providing country 
through the territory of which a very significant portion country's significant portion of third country trade occurs. The trade and transit relations are regulated by separate agreements and 
understandings concluded between the two countries. In order to further promote trade and 
investment, Bilateral Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (BIPPA) and Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) have been signed between the two nations in the recent 
years. Through these important measures, Nepal is endeavouring to further integrate its economy 
and trade with India as well as the rest of the world. 
4.293.  Finally, we expect that India will conti nue and further expand its trade liberalization 
process putting LDCs' concern and interest at th e centre. Let's hope that LDCs will have more 
flexibility in accessing Indian market both in trade in goods and services front with simplified rules 
of origin, reduced non-tariff measures and with enhanced technical assistance and capacity building support in the future.  
NIGERIA 
4.294.  Nigeria wishes to congratulate India for its impressive economic performance since its last 
trade policy review in 2011 largely due to unilateral trade and structural reforms. We acknowledge 
the Indian leadership role in the multilateral trading system, anchored by the indefatigable and 
resourceful Ambassador Anjali Prasad and her dedicated staff, particularly its strong commitments and support towards early conclusion of the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations through constructive and analytical contributions. We also wish to commend India for providing 
trade-related technical assistance and capacity building for African countries. We note with 
encouragement the growth in information technology, which is one of the fastest growing WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  industries in the economy, especially software development and IT enable services, outsourcing 
and hardware manufacturing. 
4.295.  We note from the Secretariat report that India had accepted the fourth and fifth protocols 
of the GATS as a strong advocate of the multilat eral trading system and being historically a party 
to few regional trade agreements. Despites its reservations, regionalism has been increasingly 
becoming an element of its overall policy object ive of enhanced market access for its exports. 
Given the observations from the Secretariat report , India has been a party to few regional trade 
agreements. Does the Government of India have  any plan to improve both its regional and 
bilateral agreements? If India is to adopt an effi cient approach relating to such scenarios, what 
approach would that be?   
4.296.  As indicated in the Secretariat report, India's economic performance during the period 
under review is still below 10% rate achievement in fiscal year 2010-2011. We also note that 
under the newly-revised series of India's national accounts released in January 2015, in spite of the below 10% rate achieved in fiscal year 2010-2011, India's real GDP growth was 6.9% in 
2013-2014 and estimated to be around 7.4% in 2014-2015 which shows a more positive trend and 
outlook than the previous series and it is expect ed to continue to grow at healthy rates in the 
years to come.   
4.297.  As observed from the Secretariat report, in terms of customs procedures, India continued 
its efforts to liberalize and facilitate trade, such as through the introduction of self-assessment in customs procedures and the elimination of state-trading requirements for some agricultural products. It is also mentioned that the Government  of India also proceeded with other structural 
reforms, including the elimination of price controls on diesel and relaxing foreign direct investment 
(FDI) restrictions in some of its economic sectors although Indian tariff restructure remains complex and the simple average MFN tariff rate have increased during the review period. Nigeria 
would like to encourage India to further reform its complex tariff system in such a way that it will 
enhance the predictability of its trade regime.  
4.298.  As mentioned in the Government report, services sector continued to be the major 
economic driver for Indian economy, both in te rms of GDP and employment. Indian GDP is heavily 
reliant on services in financing, insurance, real estate and business services under the revised series of national accounts issued in January 2015  which contributed more than 50% of its GDP, 
35% to exports and it also accounts for more than 50% of FDI into the country. We also recognize 
that India's export services continued on its su ccessful growth path during the period 2010-2011 
to 2013-2014, respectively.   
4.299.  Nigeria and India have similar socio-cult ural background because of the multi-ethnic 
setting of both countries. It is not a coincidence that both countries belong to G20 and G33, 
respectively. Nigeria is proud of the excellent political and economic ties with India. Indian companies have sizeable investments in textiles, ICT, chemicals, electrical equipment, 
pharmaceuticals, plastics, fishing among others in Nigeria. India has assisted Nigeria through 
transfer of technology, machinery and expertise in the form of joint ventures and consultancy services. Nigeria also imports more India pharmaceuticals than any other country in the African continent. Trade turnover continues to grow, including in computer components and software 
services, with large potential for project exports in railways, power generation and electricity 
transmission, telecommunications, defence and machine tools. On outsourcing, where India has gradually carved a niche for itself across the globe, some information communication technology 
firms in India have already started outsourcing some of their jobs to Nigerian companies.  
4.300.  The Nigerian top exports to India in recent years were petrol and crude oil which amounted 
to US$14,860,480,370; natural gas US$640,307,594; fruits/nuts, fresh/dried US$25,230,592; 
leather US$20,523,955 and oil seeds US$17,762,548 among others. While Nigeria's imports from 
India in the same years include medicaments US$312,250,363; motorcycles/cycles US$273,685,133; passenger cars US$203,466,191; rice US$154,313,478; plastic sheets US$57,463,256. Nevertheless, there are huge trade and investment opportunities between Nigeria 
and India which include spices, aluminium, lead, cocoa, and cool equipment among others. 
4.301.  However, Nigeria is concerned by discriminatory regulation and control of drugs meant for 
export as against those for internal use. This prac tice has resulted in drugs labelled ''for export WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  only'' not being subjected to the same strict regulations as those for internal use in the country of 
manufacture. Poor regulations of exports from I n d i a  e x p o s e  c o u n t r i e s  l i k e  o u r s  w i t h  w e a k  
regulation to dumping of fake drugs. Although the counterfeiting of pharmaceutical is a global 
phenomenon, some countries, including Nigeria, are more affected than others. In this regard, we 
would be grateful if appropriate remedial action is  taken by the relevant authorities to address our 
specific concerns for the sake of existing cordial relationship between our beloved countries.    
4.302.  Finally, my delegation believes that increased openness in India would reaffirm its 
leadership role, which is crucial in advancing the objectives of the multilateral trading system, 
while concluding the DDA would also enhance market access security for Indian exporters and other exporters. We commend the effort of Indi a for promoting trade and economic growth in 
developing countries and LDCs through a wide range of trade capacity building activities. We wish 
to congratulate the delegation of India on this historic occasion and also to wish them a successful 
conclusion of their trade policy review. We assure  India of our continued support and collaboration. 
BÉNIN 
4.303.  L'Inde a connu au cours des dernières décennies un développement économique qui la 
classe au nombre des puissances émergentes et fait d'elle un modèle pour les autres pays en développement, notamment les Pays les Moins Avancés (PMA), dans leurs efforts pour édifier des 
nations prospères. 
4.304.  En effet, les quatre années que couvre la période du présent examen ont été caractérisées, 
en Inde, par un environnement économique viable dont témoignent les indicateurs macroéconomiques qui situent la croissance du Produit Intérieur Brut (PIB) à 5,1% en 2012-2013 
et à 6,9% en 2013-2014. Les prévisions consolid ent cette embellie pour 2014-2015, exercice au 
titre duquel une croissance de 7,4% est attendue. 
4.305.  Ces indicateurs macroéconomiques, ainsi que les prévisions qui en découlent, sont la 
résultante des mesures hardies prises par le Gouvernement indien pour redynamiser l'économie, 
encourager et favoriser les investissements, et faire bénéficier à l'ensemble de la nation d'une prospérité partagée. 
4.306.  Pour atteindre ces objectifs, des réformes ont été menées sur les plans structurel, 
économique et financier, technologique et social. Ces réformes ont, notamment, trait à: 
 la mise en place une administration fiscale efficiente; 
 l'inclusion financière de tous les acteurs économiques;  
 l'amélioration de la facilité de faire des affaires avec la simplification des procédures liées à 
la création d'entreprises, au foncier, à la fourniture de services de base; 
 la création d'emplois, notamment pour les jeunes, et l'amélioration de la qualité de vie par 
des mesures dans les domaines de la santé et de l'assainissement de base; 
 la formation de la jeunesse, avec un accent pa rticulier pour l'éducation des jeunes filles;  
 l'appui à l'accroissement de la productivité agricole et à l'augmentation des revenus des 
exploitations agricoles;  
 l'amélioration de la connectivité numérique; 
 le lancement d'un portail unifié sur le marché du travail permettant l'enregistrement en ligne 
d'entreprises, etc. 
4.307.  En outre, pour faciliter l'investisse ment, favoriser l'innovation, et améliorer le 
développement des compétences, le Gouvernement indien a mis en œuvre le programme "Make in India", de même qu'il a lancé l'initiative "Invest India" qui consacre la création d'une unité de 
facilitation chargée de guider, d'aider et d'accompagner les investisseurs. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.308.  Par ailleurs, la politique en matière d'Investissements Étrangers Directs (IED) a été 
libéralisée et rationnalisée. 
4.309.  S'agissant du secteur de l'agriculture, la délégation du Bénin prend note des mesures 
adoptées par le Gouvernement indien, notamment  dans les domaines de la recherche, de 
l'éducation, de l'irrigation, du meilleur accès aux intrants.  
4.310.  Elle note également que ces mesures visent essentiellement à soutenir les moyens de 
subsistance des petits producteurs et producteurs marginaux, et encourage la Partie indienne à 
poursuivre ces politiques agricoles pour peu qu'elles soient compatibles avec le droit de l'OMC. 
4.311.  Toutes ces mesures ont impacté positivement les flux commerciaux de l'Inde puisqu'au 
titre de la période sous examen, les exportations se sont accrues à raison d'un taux annuel moyen de 8%, tandis que les importations ont augmenté de 6,8% conférant au pays une légère hausse 
de sa part dans les exportations et importations mondiales. 
4.312.  Il est à noter qu'en termes de répartition géographique du commerce des marchandises, 
les PMA ne figurent pas encore parmi les prin cipaux partenaires commerciaux de l'Inde.  
4.313.  Mais, dans le même temps, l'on peut se réjouir que l'Inde œuvre activement à faciliter leur 
meilleur accès à son marché en ayant été l'un des premiers pays en développement à offrir aux PMA l'accès en franchise de droits et sans cont ingent par le biais du Système de préférences 
tarifaires en franchise de droits (PTFD) initié en août 2008 et rendu entièrement opérationnel en 
octobre 2012, avec un total de 85% des lignes tarifaires en franchise de droits, 9% bénéficiant d'une marge de préférence comprise entre 10 et 100%, et 6% seulement demeurant sur la liste des exclusions. 
4.314.  Depuis le 1er avril 2014, ce régime préférentiel accorde l'accès aux marchés en franchise 
de droits pour 96% environ des lignes tarifaires de l'Inde, tandis que 2,2% des lignes bénéficient de droits préférentiels, et seulement 1,8% des lignes tarifaires ont été maintenues sur la liste des 
exclusions. 
4.315.  Ces mesures ont été assorties d'une initiative visant à simplifier les règles d'origine au 
bénéfice de trente et un (31) PMA sur quarante et huit (48). 
4.316.  Dans le domaine des services, la délégation béninoise salue l'annonce faite par l'Inde, en 
février 2015, d'accorder un traitement préférentiel aux PMA dans des domaines comme: l'accès aux marchés, les questions consulaires et l'assistance technique et le renforcement des capacités 
4.317.  La délégation du Bénin forme le vœu que les mesures annoncées portent sur des domaines 
qui ont une valeur commerciale avérée pour les PMA d'une part, et fasse l'objet de notifications 
formelles à l'OMC dans les meilleurs délais possibles, d'autre part. 
4.318.  Toujours au titre des actions en faveur des PMA et d'un point de vue plus spécifique, la 
délégation du Bénin salue la contribution active de l'Inde à la recherche d'une solution à l'Initiative 
Sectorielle en faveur du Coton et en attendant une telle solution, apprécie à leur juste valeur les activités d'assistance technique et de renforcement des capacités productives et d'exportation 
menées en direction de nombreux pays africains au  titre du volet "développement" de la question 
du coton et de la coopération Sud-Sud. 
4.319.  La délégation du Bénin félicite l'Inde pour les résultats enregistrés au cours de la période 
sous examen, et l'encourage à poursuivre ses efforts afin de surmonter les difficultés qui persistent 
au plan national dans des domaines comme: l'agriculture et la sécurité alimentaire, le secteur 
manufacturier, le développement des infrastructures, le maintien de la discipline budgétaire, etc. 
4.320.  Sur le plan multilatéral, la délégation du Bénin exhorte l'Inde, qui a toujours fait preuve de 
son attachement au multilatéralisme et au Pr ogramme de Doha pour le développement, à 
continuer à œuvrer, de concert avec les autres Membres de l'OMC, aux fins de la conclusion du cycle de Doha dans le strict respect de son mandat en faveur du développement. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  MONTENEGRO 
4.321.  Montenegro has symbolic trade relations with India. However, both our countries have 
recently stepped up their interests to improve bilateral economic cooperation including presentation of the investments opportunities of Montenegro in Mumbai and then in 
Ahmedabad/state of Gujarat. Montenegro is lookin g forward to further supporting cooperation with 
the business communities and the Institute of entrep reneurship of India. In addition, I would like 
to use this opportunity to extend my delegation's appreciation to the Centre for WTO studies in 
New Deli (supported by the Government of India) for its dedicated and excellent work in providing 
expert technical assistance to the Members of the WTO, particularly newly acceded countries, small and vulnerable economies and LDCs. 
4.322.  Let me now comment on the documents under review: Montenegro welcomes the 
Government of India's continued commitment to deliver strong economic growth, address 
economic challenges such as high inflation and to take steps to ensure that structural problems such as India's infrastructure deficit are properly addressed. Although India has been unable to 
achieve growth at the level of 2010-2011, Montenegro  notes the positive direction in which India's 
economic growth has taken during challenging economic times. With necessary reforms, Montenegro is confident that India will continue to enjoy strong economic growth for many years 
and to remain an important trading partner for the European markets.  
4.323.  In agreement with the Secretariat, Monten egro also welcomes the Government of India's 
commitment to the liberalization of its investment policies, including increases in the number of sectors in which FDI is permitted, as well as overall reductions in sectorial restrictions. Montenegro 
notes with interest the Government of India's "Make in India" initiative, as well as its commitment 
to improve the country's ranking on the ease of doing business. We are pleased to see that the 
Government of India is taking clear and positive steps to introduce necessary regulatory changes 
in service sector which accounts for more than half of India's GDP. Finally, we would like to 
emphasize the importance of India's renew commi tment to address the poverty elevation that 
remains a major challenge by the range of measures that would not directly affect its trade and 
related policies. 
4.324.  Montenegro is looking forward to continuing constructive engagement with the delegation 
of India in Geneva on the matters of mutual interest.  
MYANMAR 
4.325.  Since ancient time, Myanmar and India have enjoyed close and relations along with 
historical and cultural links. India is not only a major trading partner of Myanmar but also a neighbouring country sharing over 1300 Kilometres  of borderline. Furthermore, our two countries 
are fellow members of the Bay of Bengal Initiative on Multi-sectoral Technical and Economic 
Cooperation (BIMSTEC).  
4.326.  Myanmar-India bilateral trade volume can be observed in an upward trend, increasing year 
after year. In 2010-2011, the bilateral trade vo lume of Myanmar and India was US$1.067 billion, 
but it increased to US$1.636 billion in 2013-2014. In terms of Foreign Direct Investment inflow to Myanmar, India stood at 11th position, investing about US$400 million by the fifteen companies.  
4.327.  In the regional context, Myanmar welcomes the ASEAN-India Trade in Services and 
Investment Agreement which will enter into forc e on 15 July 2015. Myanmar would also like to 
express its appreciation for India's participation in the ongoing negotiation of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (R-CEP) 
4.328.  We commend India for making concerted efforts and taking necessary measures to 
facilitate and promote trade and investment since its last review. We are also glad to note that India continues to actively participate in regional economic forums and work with partners to 
advance multilateral trade liberalization. We are confident that India's efforts in multi-lateral 
trading system will bring benefits for all.  WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  4.329.  In conclusion, we would like to express ou r appreciation to the Permanent Representative 
of India, Ambassador Anjali Prasad and her competent team for their tireless efforts and constructive engagement with delegations here in Geneva. 
URUGUAY 
4.330.  Uruguay desea resaltar los esfuerzos llevados a cabo por la India a los efectos de optimizar 
su organización estructural y por liberalizar y facilitar el comercio. Asimismo, sus mejoras en la captación de la IED a través de la eliminación de las restricciones ha permitido captar capitales 
extranjeros que contribuyen al desarrollo del país en su conjunto. 
4.331.  El mercado de la India resulta particularmente atractivo para los cítricos uruguayos como 
las mandarinas. 
4.332.  En este sentido, Uruguay ha comenzado las gestiones para la apertura de la 
comercialización de cítricos en el año 2012, enviando toda la documentación requerida para el 
inicio del análisis de riesgo. Desde entonces, y en reiteradas oportunidades, Uruguay ha solicitado información sobre el estado en el que se encuentra este proceso, lamentablemente, sin obtener 
respuesta. 
4.333.  Asimismo, es de interés exportar peras y manzanas, por lo que Uruguay aún aguarda el 
envío de información sobre requisitos ya solicitado oportunamente. 
4.334.  Las exportaciones uruguayas a la India se han incrementado a más del doble en el período 
2010-14, exportando principalmente lana y madera. De todas formas, y con ánimos de redoblar los esfuerzos en materia de comercio entre ambos países, Uruguay desea incrementar aún más los flujos comerciales tanto de bienes como de servicios con India. 
4.335.  Existen muchos emprendimientos de empresas indias en el Uruguay, siendo el más 
importante, Tata Consultancy Services, que inició sus operaciones en 2002 como el primer centro de la compañía en América Latina. En la actualidad, cuenta con tres centros de desarrollo, uno en 
el centro de Montevideo, y dos en el parque tecnológico y de negocios "Zonamerica". 
4.336.  Es de interés de Uruguay continuar estrechando los vínculos anteriormente mencionados 
en el plano comercial y en la promoción de inversiones. 
HONDURAS 
4.337.  En lo que concierne al informe presentado, notamos con gran interés que la India ha 
continuado esforzándose por liber alizar y facilitar el comercio. 
4.338.  Hemos podido observar que el sector de servicios es el principal motor del crecimiento 
económico de la India, representando más de la mitad del PIB, lo que ha conllevado a realizar 
modificaciones reglamentarias de las principales leyes relacionadas con los servicios financieros, las telecomunicaciones y el transporte, así como la implementación de programas que permitan 
alcanzar los objetivos de política pública trazados.  
4.339.  India es un exportador neto de servicios, lo que representa que el superávit del comercio 
de servicios, en porcentaje del PIB haya aumentado del 2,6% en 2010-2011 al 3,9% en 
2013-2014, debido principalmente al crecimiento de las exportaciones de servicios de informática, 
información, telecomunicaciones y de otros servicios prestados a las empresas. 
4.340.  Al mismo tiempo, del informe se desprende que las autoridades manifiestan que el sector 
de la agricultura es el que más personas emplea en la India, siendo el principal soporte de la 
mayoría de la población, ya que da empleo al 56% de la fuerza laboral total, representando cerca 
del 17% del PIB  
4.341.  Resaltamos las modificaciones adoptadas en materia de Política de Competencia de la 
India, particularmente en el tema de fusiones, cobro de sanciones monetarias y la publicación de 
las directrices sobre las fusiones y adquisiciones en el sector de las telecomunicaciones, estando estas en sintonía con las mejores prácticas internacionales. Al mismo tiempo, destacamos el WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  reconocimiento que se le otorga a los memorandos de entendimiento y la inclusión de capítulos 
sobre política de competencia en los ACR firmados por la India.  
4.342.  En lo que respecta a nuestro comercio bilateral, este ha presentado un sostenido 
incremento en promedio y para el año 2014, importamos alrededor de 115,000,000 dólares 
EE.UU. en motores y generadores eléctricos, glándulas, tractores y caucho. Al mismo tiempo, 
exportamos 23,000,000 dólares EE.UU. en café, fundición en bruto, mantas y aluminio, entre otros.  
4.343.  Destacamos que en abril de 2015, se llevó a cabo la Reunión de Consultas Políticas entre 
la Secretaría de Relaciones Exteriores y Cooperación Internacional de la República de Honduras y el Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores de la República de la India donde se confirmó la "amistad profunda" que une a ambos países y que data de sde 1994 cuando se establecieron relaciones 
diplomáticas bilaterales, las cuales han solidificado los fuertes lazos de cooperación en áreas de 
desarrollo agrícola, comunicación, administración, finanzas, tecnología, energía, asistencia técnica y aprendizaje del idioma inglés, entre otras. 
4.344.  Destacamos la voluntad de nuestro Gobierno de aperturar la Embajada de Honduras en la 
India y agradecemos las becas otorgadas en el marco de ITEC, así como la relación estratégica de cooperación que la Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Honduras mediante el Proyecto de 
Actualización del Centro de Excelencia para la Educación en Tecnologías de la información (CEETI). 
4.345.  No podemos dejar de mencionar los proyectos financiados con las líneas de crédito 
otorgadas por el Gobierno de la India, particularmente con el Proyecto de Bajo Riego valle de Jamastran Fase I, el cual permitirá modernizar y aumentar la eficiencia de la agricultura en la zona 
para lograr el mejoramiento de los ingresos de los productores y contribuir a la seguridad 
alimentaria. 
4.346.  En el seno del Sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (SICA), esperamos poder 
continuar analizando temas importantes como la posibilidad de suscribir un instrumento que 
permita el incremento de las relaciones comerciales entre los países miembros de SICA y la India, así como la eventualidad de su incorporación como socio extra regional del BCIE.  
EL
 SALVADOR 
4.347.  Del informe de la Secretaría observamos que la economía de la India ha experimentado un 
crecimiento económico, que si bien no ha alcanzado la tasa del 10% lograda en 2010-2011, se ha venido acelerando en los últimos años.   
4.348.  Hemos observado también los esfuerzos que el Gobierno de la India ha venido realizando 
para liberalizar y facilitar el comercio, así como para una mayor integración en la economía mundial, y que ha venido haciendo reformas estructurales para superar situaciones que aún le 
impiden lograr un mayor crecimiento económico y mejorar la calidad de vida de su población. 
Creemos que la claridad de sus objetivos de política comercial, recogidos en su Política quinquenal de Comercio Exterior, le permite enfocar y tomar las medidas adecuadas que le acercarán cada 
vez más a la consecución de tales objetivos, así como sus iniciativas para impulsar e incentivar el 
comercio como "Make in India", "Digital India" y "Skills India". 
4.349.  Aunque aún presenta algunas limitantes, como complejidad y cierta falta de previsibilidad, 
se destacan los esfuerzos para racionalizar el régimen arancelario, lo cual vemos como un factor 
muy positivo. Sin embargo, es importante que la India ponga atención en los obstáculos no 
arancelarios que todavía pueden afectar a algunas importaciones.    
4.350.  Otro aspecto a señalar es el esfuerzo para modernizar su administración de los derechos 
de propiedad intelectual e imponer su observancia, fortaleciendo el marco legal de protección y 
aplicando las flexibilidades del mismo a través de la primera y única licencia obligatoria para determinados medicamentos contra el cáncer.  
4.351.  En el plano bilateral, El Salvador estableció relaciones diplomáticas con la India en febrero 
de 1979. Se resalta la cooperación que brinda la India a El Salvador en diversas áreas, destacándose los programas de becas para capacitación en informática, micro-empresas, WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  desarrollo rural, planificación educativa, normas de calidad, idioma inglés y otras vinculadas al 
tema del desarrollo, así como asistencia humanitaria recibida en desastres naturales, la suscripción del Memorándum de Entendimiento en Pesca y Acuicultura, entre otras iniciativas.   
4.352.  En cuanto al comercio bilateral, la India se ubica en el cuarto destino de exportación hacia 
el continente asiático. En cuanto a las importaciones, la India ocupa un lugar destacado en el 
ranking de proveedores de bienes de El Salvador, totalizando 95 millones de dólares EE.UU. en 2014, lo cual refleja la importancia comercial de  India para la cadena productiva del país.  
4.353.  Dicho comercio es bastante complementario, ya que de conformidad con la información del 
Banco Central de Reserva de El Salvador, para el período 2012-2014, las exportaciones de El Salvador hacia la India se concentraron en maderas tropicales, productos de hierro y acero y aluminio, nueces, productos a base de bálsamo, entre otros, mientras que las exportaciones de la 
India a El Salvador se concentraron en materiales colorantes sintéticos, medicamentos, vehículos y 
motocicletas, partes de calderas de vapor, aleaciones de aluminio, entre otros.  
4.354.  Adicionalmente, alentamos a la India a profundizar las relaciones comerciales y mejorar el 
nivel de inversión en la región latinoamericana, tal como lo manifestó la Ministra de Economía de 
la India en un encuentro en Nueva Delhi con países  de América Latina y el Caribe en octubre del 
año pasado.  
4.355.  En el plano multilateral, tal como lo recoge el informe de la Secretaría, la India es Miembro 
fundador de la OMC y ha sido firme defensora del sistema multilateral de comercio. El Salvador aplaude los esfuerzos de la India en el marco de esta Organización para velar por los intereses de los países en desarrollo y agradece el apoyo que da a las pequeñas economías, agrupación a la 
que El Salvador pertenece.  
4.356.  Destacamos la activa participación de la India en la Ronda de Negociaciones de Doha y en 
general, su participación en el G33, agrupación en que ambos países participamos para impulsar 
nuestros intereses comunes en materia agrícola. 
MAURITIUS 4.357.  Let me start by welcoming the Indian delegati on to this Trade Policy Review. I avail of this 
opportunity to underline the strong, close and historical bilateral relations that exist between 
Mauritius and India. 
4.358.  India has made significant progress since the last review in 2011 and major prospects are 
opening up for it. The Indian Government's efforts and initiatives at bilateral, regional and 
multilateral level to facilitate trade and investment and further the country's integration in the 
world economy have been the engines of its economic development. 
4.359.  My delegation wishes to commend India on its economic performance. To have achieved 
real GDP growth of 6.9% in 2013-14 at this particular juncture in the global economy is 
remarkable. During the period under review, India has continued to play an important role in international trade and as a driving force in the global economy. 
4.360.  We wish to laud the vibrant economic di plomacy spearheaded by Prime Minister Modi. We 
are encouraged by the steps India has taken to further amplify its attractiveness as a trade and i n v e s t m e n t  d e s t i n a t i o n .  O n  F D I ,  w e  n o t e  t h a t  India has introduced a number of incentives to 
encourage investment, opening up more sectors fo r foreign investment and the "Make in India" 
programme to promote further investment in industry and services.  
4.361.  We also note that several actions have been taken to re-energize the economy with a 
focus on accelerating growth, enhancing investment  and passing on the benefits of growth to the 
common people in India.  
4.362.   We welcome the efforts of the Government of India for its ambitious reform agenda 
aiming at creating jobs and improving the quality of life of its people. In that respect, we wish to 
commend the launched in 2014 of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, a programme for financial 
inclusion which envisages universal access to banking facilities with at least one basic banking WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  account for every household and designed to addres s social security schemes so that every Indian 
citizen is provided suitable cover during illness, accidents, or in old age. 
4.363.  On the multilateral front, India is a strong  defender of the multilateral trading system. We 
share India's approach for an inclusive, transparent and balanced outcome in the Doha Round 
Negotiations. We commend India's continued support for the sustainable economic development of 
developing and least-developed countries including SIDS and NFIDCs like Mauritius.  
4.364.  Given the pro-active nature of the India's reform agenda and restructuring efforts, India is 
likely to continue to perform well. We are very encouraged by the tangible and positive results and 
achievements. 
ZIMBABWE 4.365.  It is interesting to note that India has taken bold steps to revitalize its economy through a 
set of reforms which have resulted in high GDP growth rates during the review period. India's 
economy has thus been resilient despite global contraction. 
4.366.  During the period under review, India continued to make efforts to liberalize its trade, and 
foreign trade plays now a significant role in the country's economic development. India two-way 
merchandise crossed the US$760 billion mark in 2013, and this translated to 44% of GDP. India's 
share of global trade, however, remains relatively low. 
4.367.  We commend India for its valuable role in the multilateral trading system and for its stern 
efforts to address the imbalances in the global trade rules for the benefit of developing countries, especially in the area of food security. 
4.368.  Zimbabwe and India enjoy a long histor y of mutually beneficial economic bilateral 
relations. Trade between the two countries is under the MFN trade agreement of 1981 and has 
been progressively increasing in favour of India. India has also become a key South-South cooperating partner. 
4.369.  Regarding foreign direct investment, Indian investors continue to increase their presence 
in Zimbabwe, mainly in the pharmaceuticals,  agro-processing, textiles manufacturing and 
production of steel products. 
4.370.  India has also availed lines of credit for infrastructural development projects and business 
activities, as well as provision of trade and business related capacity building to Zimbabwe officials. 
4.371.  Regarding technology transfer, the Indian  Government has provided equipment for SMEs 
incubators, and US$5 million worth of State of th e art equipment for the establishment of SMEs 
technology centres. We greatly appreciate the supp ort that we continue to receive from the Indian 
Government and this has had a positive impact on our economy. 
4.372.  Prospects for greater economic cooperation between Zimbabwe and India are certain. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  5  REPLIES BY THE REPRESENTATIVE OF INDIA AND ADDITIONAL COMMENTS 
5.1.  I would like to begin by thanking all the distinguished Members for having actively 
participated in the sixth Trade Policy Review of India. Let me also express my sincere appreciation to the distinguished Permanent Representative of Philippines, Ambassador Esteban Conejos, for 
being the Discussant for India's TPR. His insightful analysis of India's trade policy regime coupled 
with his personal understanding of India prov ided an excellent backdrop for constructive 
deliberations at this Trade Policy Review of India. I would also like to convey our gratitude to the 
Chairman, TPRB, Ambassador Paparizov for very smooth conduct of the proceedings. 
5.2.  My delegation and I deeply appreciate wr itten contributions and thoughtful interventions 
made by the Members during this session which gave us an opportunity to understand various perspectives on India's trade policies and practices. We are encouraged by the positive assessment 
of India's policies and potential and the desire expressed by Members for deeper bilateral trade 
and economic engagement with India. We see the critical analysis of our trade policies in a spirit of understanding. It is important to recognize that economic reform process is an ongoing activity. 
5.3.  Although we have made progress on ease of doing business in India, the Government of 
India is committed to pursue greater reforms with an objective to liberalize trade and attract investments. It is also our endeavour to ensure that while our reform process is dynamic and 
forward looking, it essentially remains centred on an inclusive economic growth to address our 
developmental challenges, in particular, poverty alleviation. 
5.4.  I am pleased to report that we have prov ided written answers to over 700 questions posed to 
us before the deadline, as well as for most of the questions received thereafter (about 13 
questions still remain unanswered and since them involve statistical information, we will provide 
them much earlier than stipulated for the purp ose). I hope Members have had time to review 
these responses.  
5.5.  My delegation and I have attentively liste ned to all the interventions made by Members and 
have also taken note of areas of concerns highlighted by them. Mr. Chairman, you would appreciate that since most issues raised by the Members are common, I would like to address 
these issue-wise rather than country-wise. Shou ld there be any specific query by any Member, 
these can be taken up through our Mission in due course. 
5.6.  Like several WTO Members, India too has been undertaking continuous autonomous tariff 
liberalization, which has generated a gap between India's bound and applied tariff rates, especially 
for non-agricultural goods. However, the assertion that there is unpredictability in India's tariff 
structure is misplaced because in the last eight years the structure of our customs tariff has remained virtually unchanged. The "peak applied rate" for non-agricultural products has been 
maintained at 10%. 
5.7.  Another assertion that India's tariff structure is complex because of imposition of a number of 
"Other Duties and Charges" over and above the app lied tariffs is also inaccurate. These duties are 
imposed to equalize internal taxes such as Central and State VAT and other taxes leviable on 
domestic production, consumption or sale of goods which are not only WTO compatible but are also commonly followed in most Member countries. The introduction of the Goods and Services Tax (GST) is likely to reduce the number of such levies and further simplify our tax structure.  
5.8.  We have put in place an online "Duty Calculator" which facilitates free access to information 
on the current rates of duty applicable to any goods. 
5.9.  Today, India's agriculture sector is facing several challenges in terms of small land holdings 
and fragmentation of land, inadequate irrigation facilities, low productivity, and high input costs. 
Therefore, in countries such as ours it is imperative that we maintain agricultural domestic policies that provide sustainable livelihood to large part of our population dependant on agriculture. The 
domestic support rendered to agriculture is well within the WTO rules as brought out in our 
notifications. Our support is less than US$200 per active person in agriculture which is miniscule compared to extremely high support, as high as up to 250 times, being provided by many 
developed countries. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  5.10.  We re-affirm our commitment to work towards removing those asymmetries that are 
distorting the present agriculture trade rules an d putting farmers and agriculture producers in 
developing countries at high disadvantage. 
5.11.  A few Members commented on the import licensing regime in India. Mr. Chairman, let me 
underline that India's import licensing regime is open and transparent. Licences are granted on a 
non-discriminatory basis. The relevant regulations are available in the public domain. Import licensing affects only a few restricted items primarily on grounds of the need to protect human, 
animal and plant life, and the environment.  
5.12.  Many Members expressed concern about frequent use of trade remedy measures by India. I 
would like to reiterate that trade remedy investigations are conducted in a transparent manner and in accordance with the provisions of the WT O Anti-dumping Agreement. They are initiated and 
conducted strictly in accordance with relevant rules and regulations to overcome unfair trade 
practices causing injury to the domestic industry. Anti-dumping investigations are initiated by the investigating authority only when the evidence provided by the domestic industry is credible, 
establishing beyond doubt that there is a causal link between the dumped imports and the injury 
caused to the domestic industry. Reasonable an d adequate opportunities are provided to the 
interested parties at every stage of the investigat ion. Further, we invariably use the lesser duty 
rule so that the anti-dumping duty is no more than required to offset the injury. Having said this, 
let me underline that during the period of review, the number of initiations of antidumping investigation was significantly less than in the previous review period. Some Members sought to know about the changes made in the domestic regulations on antidumping provisions. This has 
been done to clarify certain provisions in accord ance with the Anti-Dumpi ng Agreement and to lay 
down transparent procedures. 
5.13.  Some Members referred to the lack of tran sparency in respect of TBT and SPS measures. I 
would like to reiterate that India adheres to the transparency provisions in the development and 
implementation of SPS and TBT measures and remains committed to following these in conformity with the respective agreements of the WTO. I would like to underline that most of India's 
standards are aligned with international standards. As of December 2014, out of 5862 BIS 
Standards that have corresponding international standards, 5238, that is approximately 90%, are 
harmonized with the international standards, much above the 84% achieved in March 2010. Further, through an annual Standards Conclave, our stakeholders are being regularly sensitized on 
the need to align domestic standards with international standards to the extent possible. To take 
this process forward, suitable amendments in the BIS Act are being contemplated. Similarly, the standards that are now being formulated by the Fo od Safety and Standards Authority of India are 
increasingly harmonized with international standards. This policy is absolutely transparent with 
opportunity to offer comments available to stakeholders.  
5.14.  We appreciate the recognition of recent reform measures taken by the Government to 
steadily liberalize and rationalize our foreign investment regime with a view to enhancing investor 
confidence. Today, FDI up to 100% is permitted under the automatic route in most sectors of the economy. FDI limits have been enhanced/liberal ized recently in key sectors such as defence 
production, medical devices, construction, railway infrastructure and insurance. This is being 
reviewed regularly with the aim of further improving the investment environment in consultation 
with stakeholders.   
5.15.  We are pleased to hear that the "Make in India" programme has generated significant 
interest among Members. This initiative, introduced in 2014, aims to make India a manufacturing 
hub, with the additional objective of generating millions of jobs for the youth of India. As part of this initiative, information on 25 sectors has been provided on a web portal along with details of 
the Foreign Direct Investment policy, National Manufacturing Policy, intellectual property rights. 
Large infrastructure projects with opportunities for investment like various industrial corridor projects have also been showcased. In order to enhance the ease of doing business, an Investor 
Facilitation Cell "Invest India" has also been set up to guide, assist, and handhold investors. We 
are encouraged by the enthusiastic response this initiative has evoked internationally. 
5.16.  Similarly, the E-Biz Project, which was referred to by some Members, is yet another 
important significant initiative of the Government of India in the area of trade facilitation. This is a 
customer-centric portal, which aims to provide services to business community in a seamless 
manner. Through this portal, one would be able to apply and manage all the licenses, clearances, WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  registrations and regulatory filings on a 24X7 basi s. We are endeavouring to constantly improve 
this services portal in order to cut down red tape and improve on the time lines.  
5.17.  Several Members inquired about India's notification of its category A commitments and 
ratification of the WTO's Trade Facilitation Agr eement. We are working on the notification of 
category A commitments under the TFA.  
5.18.  I am happy to hear positive assessment from the LDC members about India's Duty Free 
Tariff Preference Scheme for LDCs as well as preferential measures, including waiver of visa fee, 
announced by India pursuant to the Bali decision for Services Waiver for LDCs. A few Members 
referred to making rules of origin simpler for accessing the DFTP preferences. In March this year, we have also liberalized the rules of origin and simplified other procedural requirements. We do hope that other Members too will take similar action to provide better market access opportunities 
for LDC members.  
5.19.  Lastly, I am happy to note that Members remain actively engaged to develop the post-Bali 
Work Programme by end-July and prepare for the MC 10 in Nairobi. India is a strong votary of an 
equitable, fair and rules based multilateral trading system. We believe that we have a unique 
opportunity, indeed an obligation to restore balance in international trade, by providing a level playing field to the developing countries, particularly in agriculture. The development dimension 
must remain central to the Doha Round and Members should strive to work towards concluding it 
with balanced outcomes for all. India is committed to playing its part in close consultation with other Members as we advance our work in the weeks ahead in the run up to the MC10 in Nairobi.  
5.20.  In conclusion, I would like to thank all WTO Members for their interest and participation in 
the sixth Trade Policy Review of India. It has been  an extremely productive and useful exercise for 
us. Active participation of Members demonstrates abiding interest in India's trade policy and desire t o  f u r t h e r  d e e p e n  t r a d e  a n d  e c o n o m i c  r e l a t i o n s  w i t h  I n d i a .  I  h o p e  w e  h a v e  b e e n  a b l e  t o  
satisfactorily respond to most of your observations and concerns. We will be responding to any 
outstanding questions in writing within the stipulated timeline.   
DISCUSSANT 
5.21.  First of all I would like to start by thanking the Honourable Commerce Secretary and the 
members of the Indian delegation for their patience  in listening to the more than 44 interventions 
that were given from the floor since our meeting last Tuesday and, more importantly, for the specific answers that you have provided to the areas of main concern that were raised during 
these interventions. I also would like to commend them for their hard work in responding to more 
than 700 questions from 30 countries. I know that it's  a difficult task but you must realize India is 
an important player in the multilateral trading sy stem. This is a feeling that you can take home 
with you when you return to New Delhi. 
5.22.  Over the last two days, Members have approached the issues that we have identified from 
different perspectives. For example, while Memb ers welcome the streamlining of India's customs 
procedures and the implementation of trade facilitation measures such as the use of 
self-assessment and the application of risk manageme nt to almost 97.6% of imports, at the same 
time, Members have also expressed continuing concern on the import regime which, Members say, remains complex at this time, especially with reference to licensing and permit system. We, of 
course, take note of what the Honourable Secretary has just mentioned with respect to this issue 
of import regime being complex and tariff regime being likewise complex. I am sure many of us would like the opportunity to study this statement in greater length at a more leisurely pace but 
we take note Mr Secretary of the comments you just made on these two important issues of 
import regime as well as tariff structure. 
5.23.  There were also calls from Members on when India would work on their category A 
commitments and we are glad to know that the Secretary has assured as that this work is ongoing 
as we speak.  
5.24.  On tariffs, many of the delegations welcomed  the introduction during the next fiscal year of 
the Goods and Services Tax which would remove the multiple layers of taxation. And the Secretary 
also mentioned in his statement that this would really make a major contribution in alleviating WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  concerns raised by Members on the complexity of the tariff structure in India especially with 
respect to agricultural products. So, we welcome this very important development Mr Secretary.  
5.25.  There were also concerns about subsidies, specially aimed at supporting agriculture, food, 
fertilizers and there were specific mentions of ar eas in sugar and confectionary, but the Secretary 
said that on bilateral issues, the mission in Geneva would be prepared to respond to all these 
specific concerns. There were also concerns raised about price controls in some commodities including liquefied petroleum gas, natural ga s, kerosene and agricultural products.  
5.26.  On the FDI front, there was universal acclaim on India's continuing effort to liberalize its 
investment policies including raising foreign ownership limits in some sectors such as pharmaceuticals, insurance and railway transport. And we welcome this Mr Secretary. And along with the improvements in FDI, there is also grea ter impetus for more effective enforcement of IP 
rules and regulations.  
5.27.  There were also concerns about SPS and TBT and some expressions of support in trying to 
align these more with international standards and we heard from the Honourable Secretary 
likewise that this is a programme that they are completely dedicated on pursuing. 
5.28.  On India, as a major user of anti-dumping measure, there were some interventions from 
the floor asking India to exercise more caution and due restraint in conducting a thorough review 
to insure that measures taken only if they are fully justified and not used for protectionist purpose. 
We heard the Secretary this morning saying that they will only apply these anti-dumping measures when they are justified under existing WTO agreements. 
5.29.  We have seen this dichotomy from the Indian perspective. We heard the Secretary just 
deliver his concluding statement, which as I said, responded very specifically to these concerns 
and we thank him again for that and you would recall also that based on his opening statement on Tuesday and the Government report submitted by India that while enormous progress and strides 
and gains have been achieved in terms of moving forward the Indian economy, India continues to 
face major challenges identified in the report of the Government as: (1) agriculture and food security, where many of the subsidies and the SPS concerns that were raised by Members actually 
are present; (2) they also mentioned about the huge manufacturing challenge they are trying to 
address specially with the new programme that they just rolled out last April 15; and (3) of course, the challenge to address the major infrastructure deficit that they have identified.  
5.30.  This is India. They have an enormous go al yet at the same time they are realistic to 
recognize that they also face huge challenges  and roadblocks along the way. So, different 
perspectives, both from Members and, of course. from the Indian perspective, but I think different perspectives are understandable and, at this point, the best I can do is to quote from the 
Honourable Secretary's statement on Tuesday when he said that "I would like to say that through 
focus efforts aimed at overcoming the challenges of poverty, unemployment and income equality, we are confident that India will play an increasingly an important role in global trade. A lot has 
been achieved but we are conscious that more needs to be done. India is a work in progress. An 
idea whose time has come."  
5.31.  And, I like very much what I have heard from the Secretary just a while ago when he said 
that "the reform process of India is going to be  a positive and a forward looking endeavour". The 
aim of the process will always be to achieve inclus ive growth in terms of reduction of poverty. All 
of these policies have to be looked at from that perspective to give us an idea where India will be going in the next four to five years.  
5.32.  I mentioned those concerns which I felt there were some varying perspectives, but 
Mr Secretary I must say that, based on the discussions we had in the last two days, there are two areas where I think there was universal acclaim and there were no ifs and buts here. First, was the 
amount of assistance that India has provided to  the LDCs and, here, we are referring to the 
duty-free, quota-free privileges that India has exte nded to LDCs that covers almost 96% of tariff 
lines. We appreciate that gesture in behalf of our LDC colleagues. And the second one, of course, 
was the preferential treatment that India has provid ed to LDCs in services and especially in the 
provision of technical assistance and capacity building. This was universally acclaimed and we 
thank India for this very important initiative. The second area where I think there are no ifs and WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  buts, which is quiet obvious to all of us. It's so obvious that there's easily no point in 
demonstrating the fact that India is a powerful force for good in the WTO. Many developing countries look up to India for leadership and for inspiration and it is our hope that India will continue to discharge this huge responsibility with firmness, with brilliance, with fidelity, and in the 
spirit of constructive engagement for the benefit of all.  
5.33.  My overall conclusion is that we have ha d a rich and fruitful discussion which augurs very 
well for the future of India and the WTO. I can almo st foresee that the 7th TPR will be focusing on 
how this new initiative of the Foreign Trade Policy which was rolled out last April will eventually be 
implemented in the course of the years. We have our sights set on that, we are all excited about 
on how this will work out and we look forwar d to a very successful implementation of this 
ambitious but very realistic work programme for your country.  
5.34.  I think I will stop here, but before I will relinquish this role, I would like to conclude the way 
I concluded my first day statement on Tuesday and it is to thank Ambassador Anjali for making me a part of India's sixth Trade Policy Review. 
EUROPEAN
 UNION 
5.35.  The EU would like to thank India for having provided many comprehensive replies to our 
advance questions. 
5.36.  However, the EU somehow regrets India di d not adopt the so called alternative timeframe 
for this review, which allows Members to receive the reviewed Member's replies in advance of the 
meeting and we do hope that next time this will be the case. 
5.37.  Regarding some of the replies provided, the EU still considers that there is room for further 
improvement in terms of facilitati on of doing business and reviewin g existing regulations that may 
be too burdensome on operators, without achiev ing their basic legitimate purpose sometimes and 
may not contribute to enabling India to achieve its ambitious and legitimate goals. 
5.38.  EU has raised a few follow-up questions that we have submitted to the WTO Secretariat in 
advance of the meeting. Please allow me to highlight some of the issues. 
5.39.  Regarding FDI, the EU is interested to know whether India to renegotiate its past BITs using 
the model or whether the model will only be used for new investment agreements. 
5.40.  Regarding SPS issues, we urge India to strive for embracing international standards, such 
as accepting animal disease regionalization prin ciple and practice and alternatives to methyl-
bromide fumigation for plant products and approaches, and use less trade restrictive measures to 
achieve its legitimate policy objectives of protecting animal and plant health and food safety. 
5.41.  Regarding TBT issues, let me take an exampl e of India's reply to the EU question 38 on food 
labelling and the use of additional stickers. We do not agree with the reply by India as we consider 
that Codex provides that the labelling requirement can be met through sticker(s). In fact, this is 
the wide-spread practice among WTO Members, confirming the fact that they can be means to provide reliable information to consumers. 
5.42.  Regarding TBT notifications, we are of the view that the situation could be further improved 
and we have asked a few follow-up questions on the policy in place, for example on certification. 
5.43.  Regarding financial services, we are interested in pursuing the discussion with India as to 
what are exactly the criteria that allow India to assess reciprocity and the share of political 
considerations that are mentioned as a criterion in India's reply. 
5.44.  While the EU did not submit specific follow-up question on subsidies on textiles, we are 
encouraged by the press interview Minister Sitharaman gave (to Mint, and Indian paper) 
acknowledging that India will comply with WTO obligations and will phase out subsidies for textiles 
as India passes the prescribed threshold. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  5.45.  In conclusion, the EU would like to reiterate again the importance of increased transparency 
of trade and investment related regulatory processes in India. We recognize the many positive developments in this area, and encourage India to strive for more, as it would foremost benefit its own companies, the Indian exporters and Indian  manufacturers who are becoming part of the 
global value chains and rely on  inputs from foreign partners. 
5.46.  Finally, please let me convey the appreciati on of the EU to Secretary Rajeev Kher. Mr Kher's 
professional knowledge and high personal standi ng is well known in the EU and is highly 
appreciated. 
UNITED
 STATES 
5.47.  I would like to thank the Indian delegation for their efforts in this TPR, we know that it 
required a great deal of efforts to prepare and provide all the responses to the numerous questions 
that India received. 
5.48.  We submitted some additional questions and we look forward to the written replies to those. 
We would like to congratulate India for its successful TPR. WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  6  CONCLUDING REMARKS BY THE CHAIRPERSON 
6.1.  The sixth Trade Policy Review of India has offered us an excellent opportunity to learn about 
the development of the trade, economic, and invest ment policies of India since its previous Review 
in 2011, and the challenges it faces. Our discussion was greatly facilitated by the statement from 
the head of the delegation of India, Mr Rajeev  Kher, Commerce Secretary, and by the insightful 
comments from the Discussant, the Ambassador of the Philippines to the WTO, Mr Esteban Conejos. India's prompt response to more than 700 advanced written questions has been greatly 
appreciated by Members, and we look forward to  answers to any outstanding questions no later 
than one month after this meeting. 
6.2.  Members commended India's accelerating economic growth during the review period, 
particularly in the services sector, and the milder inflation in recent years. Members recognized 
India's need and willingness to overcome its structural bottlenecks, including fiscal deficit, 
shortfalls in infrastructure such as education, health care, transportation, power supply, delays in project approval, difficulties in land acquisition, low manufacturing base and agricultural 
productivity, and cumbersome labour market regula tions. In this respect, Members urged India in 
particular to pursue further tax reforms, which may increase government revenues, as well as to 
increase investment in infrastructure. They welcomed its steps to introduce a nationwide Goods 
and Services Tax. Members commended India's measures to improve business and investment 
environment, including "make in India" initiatives, and the establishment of an e-business portal. While appreciating India's efforts at raising foreign equity limits in some sectors such as insurance and railway transport, and speeding up inve stment procedures, they asked for further 
improvement in these areas. 
6.3.  Members recognized that India is playing a more important role in the global economy as one 
of the largest developing countries. Members commended India's active participation in the 
multilateral trading system and the key role it assumes in the DDA negotiations. Members 
appreciated India's trade facilitation measures, such as the adoption of self-assessment in customs procedures, and encouraged India to submit its Category A notification under the Agreement on 
Trade Facilitation and to expedite the ratification process. Some Members looked forward to India's 
implementation of the Information Technology  Agreement. Members noted India's increased 
involvement in regional trade agreements, and hoped that these agreements will contribute to maintaining and strengthening the multilateral trading system. While some Members commended 
India's recent initiatives to improve the transparency and predictability of its trade and related 
policies, such as inviting public comments on new legislation, Members urged India to provide timely public consultations on draft regulations, su bmit notifications on a regular basis to the WTO, 
and provide a reasonable period between the anno uncement of new regulations and their entering 
into force. Members appreciated that India has be en providing duty free and quota free access for 
LDC exports; in this regard, some Members encouraged India to simplify rules of origin 
requirements.  
6.4.  Members welcomed India's various economic and trade policy reforms. However, they voiced 
concerns with respect to tariff increases, the complexity and uncertainty in tariffs and other charges including an additional duty and a sp ecial additional duty, and the large difference 
between applied and bound rates. Some Members raised concerns about customs valuation and 
import licensing requirements on particular prod ucts. Recent changes to anti-dumping regulations 
were noted. However, concerns were raised on th e frequent use of contingency measures as well 
as the complexity of import licensing measures. Some Members asked questions regarding India's 
technical regulations and SPS measures, including how they are related to international standards. Questions were also raised about the technical regulations and certification procedures concerning 
certain specific products. Some Members urged India to avoid recourse to export restrictions and 
minimum export prices.  
6.5.  Members welcomed the removal of some subsidies and price controls on fossil fuels (such as 
diesel). Concerns were expressed by some Members regarding subsidies, in particular those 
pertaining to agriculture and food (for example, on  sugar), and fertilizers. Other issues raised by 
Members include local content requirements and India's intellectual property regime, in particular regarding the protection of trade secrets and test data.  
6.6.  Members commended India for not introducing new trade barriers in order to protect 
agriculture and manufacturing sectors, and also for eliminating state trading requirements for WT/TPR/W/81 • India 
 
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  some agricultural products. Nonetheless, concerns were raised on its high agricultural tariffs and 
some uncertainties concerning domestic supply conditions for agricultural products. Members called for a balance between food security and a pr edictable trade regime, and urged India to step 
up its efforts to liberalize its agriculture sector notably by lowering and simplifying its tariffs.  
6.7.  Members recognized services as the main pillar of India's economy. This sector has 
contributed substantially to the recent economic growth. Members urged further liberalization of services, including distribution and e-commerce.  
6.8.  The Indian authorities provided detailed  answers to Members' questions and comments 
expressed at this meeting. The sixth Review of In dia's trade policies was successfully concluded to 
the benefit of all the Membership. The large number of advance written questions submitted 
before the meeting and the number of delegations that took the floor during our two days of 
discussions highlight the importance attached to In dia's trade and related policies and its role in 
the multilateral trading system. In closing, I would like to thank Secretary Kher and the rest of the Indian delegation, all the other delegations, the Discussant and the Secretariat for the very 
positive and active contribution to the sixth Trade Policy Review of India. 
 
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