opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 483 (STARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: SEZ Policy
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: ADVOCATE NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. 483 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02 nd  APRIL,2018

## SEZ POLICY

## *483. ADV. NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वािणÏय एवं उɮयोग मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether it is true that various States have not enacted the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) Act and have not framed SEZ Policy;
- (b) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
- (c) whether  the  Government  has  not  impressed  upon  the  States  to  introduce  single window system for SEZs; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the remedial steps proposed by the Government in this regard?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=h ¼ Jh lqjs'k izHkq ½

THE MINISTER OF  COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI SURESH PRABHU)

- a) to  d):  A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (d) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 483   FOR ANSWER ON 02 nd  APRIL,2018 REGARDING 'SEZ POLICY'.

(a) and (b): Yes Madam.  Some States have not enacted the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) Acts  and  have  not  framed  SEZ  Policy.    The  States  that  have  enacted  their  SEZ  Acts  are  as under:

- (i)  Madhya  Pradesh,  2003,  (ii)  West  Bengal,  2003,  (iii)  Gujarat,  2004,  (iv)  Tamil Nadu, 2005, (v)Haryana, 2006 and (vi) Punjab, 2009 .

Further, the following States have framed their SEZ Policies:

(i)  Maharashtra,  2001,  (ii)  Jharkhand,  2003,  (iii)  Uttar  Pradesh,  2007,  (iv)  Kerala, 2008 and (v) Karnataka, 2009.

(c) and (d): As per Rule 5 sub-rule 5(h) of the SEZs Rules, 2006, the State Government shall  endeavour  to  provide  a    single  window  clearance  system  to  the  proposed  SEZs Developers and Units, under their State Acts and Rules. The Central Government has advised State  Governments  from  time  to  time  for  implementation  of  effective  Single  Window Mechanism to ensure timely State Government clearances for SEZs Developers and Units.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 482 (STARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Withholding of Admit Cards of Students
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: G. HARI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF SCHOOL EDUCATION & LITERACY

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO.*482 TO BE ANSWERED ON 2 nd  APRIL, 2018

## Withholding of Admit Cards of Students

## *482. . SHRI G. HARI:

Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  it  is  true  that  the  Central  Board  of  Secondary  Education  (CBSE)  has warned  schools  against  withholding  of  admit  cards  of  10th  and  12th  class students on any pretext, including poor performance in pre-board examinations;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether it is also true that CBSE has received complaints about withholding of admit cards by certain schools; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

## (SHRI PRAKASH JAVADEKAR)

- (a) to (d): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO THE PARTS (a) TO (d) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO.*482 FOR ANSWER ON 02.04.2018 ASKED BY . SHRI G. HARI,  MP,  LOK  SABHA  REGARDING  'WITHHOLDING  OF  ADMIT  CARDS  OF STUDENTS'. (a) and (b): The  Central  Board  of  Secondary  Education  (CBSE)  has  issued  an Advisory  to  the  Principal/  Heads  of  the  Institutions  of    all  its  affiliated  schools  on 23 rd February,  2018  to  not  to  hold  the  Admit  Card  of  candidate(s)  of  Class  X/XII Examination as per Rule 15 of the CBSE Examination Bye Laws, if the candidate(s) are otherwise eligible. This advisory can be accessed on the CBSE  website at http://cbse.nic.in/newsite/circulars/ 2018/ advisory23. pdf. (c) and (d): While  there  is no  instructions  with  regard  to  conduct  of  pre-board examination from the Board's side, yet instances came to notice of the Board through mails as well as telephonic queries from the parents stating that the admit card of their ward(s) were being held up on the ground of some pretext such as poor performance in the pre-board test as well as school dues, etc. The Board took the cognizance of such instances and these were resolved by issuing the Advisory on 23.02.2018.

***
Lok Sabha Question No. 5747 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Medical Benefits to ITPO Retired Employees
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB, SANJAY SHAMRAO DHOTRE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5747 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02 nd  APRIL,2018

## MEDICAL BENEFITS TO ITPO RETIRED EMPLOYEES

## 5747.  SHRI BHARTRUHARI MAHTAB: SHRI SANJAY DHOTRE:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वािणÏय एवं उɮयोग मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether as per a circular of Department of Public Enterprises, the retired employees of India Trade Promotion Organisation (ITPO) are entitled to pensionary as well as medical benefits and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether it has come to the notice of the Government that despite the said circular in the matter, medical benefits are being denied to such employees;
- (c) if so, the reasons therefor;
- (d) whether  the  Ministry  has  received  several  representations  from  such  employees seeking medical benefits and if so, the details thereof along with the action taken thereon; and
- (e) the  time  by  which  a  final  decision  is  likely  to  be  taken  on  extending  medical benefits to the retired ITPO employees?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT; ea=h ¼Jh lh- vkj- pkS/kjh½

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C. R. CHAUDHARY)

- (a) to (e): The DPE O.M. No. 2 (70)/08-DPE (WC) dated 26.11.2008 and O.M. guidelines regarding Superannuation Benefits including Pension and pension and post-superannuation medical benefits would be subject

No. 2(70)/08-DPE (WC)-GL-VII/09 dated 2.4.2009  provide the Post-Retirement Medical Benefit schemesto be adopted by the CPSEs. The guidelines, however, qualifythat the schemes for to the factors like affordability, capacity to pay and sustainability of the CPSE.

ITPO has taken a decision that being a 'not for profit' company with the redevelopment project involving a large financial outgo,they will not adopt a Post-Retirement Medical Scheme (PRMS) for the present. The Ministry has received representations from employees of ITPO seeking medical benefits. Since the matter was directly within the purview of the ITPO administration, the representations were forwarded to ITPO for consideration and response to the petitioners. ITPO informs that they have duly apprised the petitioners of their decision in this regard. **********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5746 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Action Plan for Entrepreneurship
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: RAKESH SINGH

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5746 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02.04.2018

## ACTION PLAN FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## †5746. SHRI RAKESH SINGH:

## Will the Minister of SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Directorate of Training and Technical Education is preparing any action plan for entrepreneurship development and training in ITIs of the country and if so, the details thereof, Statewise;
- (b) whether  proposals  are  being  sought  by  the  Directorate  of  Training  and  Technical Education from various States to include Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) also and if so, the details thereof, State/UT-wise; and
- (c) whether proposal from the Government of Madhya Pradesh for including ITI of the State in the said scheme has been received and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER IN THE MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a). National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small business Development (NIESBUD) an autonomous Institution, under the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship    and  Directorate  General  of  Training  (DGT)  has  signed  a  Memorandum  of Understanding (MoU)  on 8 th February,2018 for sustained development of entrepreneurial skills and education aimed at enhancement of self-employment opportunities for trainees of ITIs on pan India basis. Areas of Collaboration under the MoU are as under:

- i. Organising Trainer's Training Progragmme for the instructors of ITIs , both Government and Private in area of entrepreneurship skills and education
- ii. Developing  course  curriculum  on  entrepreneurship    for  thirty  hours    for  the  two  years course of  ITI
- iii. Entrepreneurship Orientation   of  the trainees of ITI  through E-learning modules
- iv. Identifying entrepreneurial opportunities and programs for the trainees of ITIs
- v. Workshops and incubation support through industries as a part of their CSR.
- vi. Preparation and exchange of Course Design and Exchange of faculty and software.
- vii. Promoting entrepreneurial activities amongst the stakeholders of skill eco-system.
- viii. Promoting self -employment opportunities for Trainees of ITIs
- ix. Any other activity that can be taken up to promote entrepreneurship development

(b) & (c) Under the MoU series of courses will be conducted by DGT and NIESBUD jointly for training of instructor of 'Employability Skills' of ITIs including the State of Madhya Pradesh. In  the  pilot  programme  for  training  of  trainers  of  ITIs,  43  instructors  of  ITIs  from  Delhi  and Uttar Pradesh were trained in one week programme conducted at NIESBUD, Noida from 21 st February to 26 th February, 2018.

Course curriculum on entrepreneurship for thirty hours  for the two years course of  ITI has also been developed to include more information on Entrepreneur Skills in curricula of 'Employability Skills'.

********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5744 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: New Units of FSNL
Ministry: STEEL
Asked by: HEMANT TUKARAM GODSE

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5744

## FOR ANSWER ON 02/04/2018

## NEW UNITS OF FSNL

5744.  SHRI GODSE HEMANT TUKARAM:

Will the Minister of STEEL be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government proposes to set up some new units under the Ferro Scrap Nigam Limited in the country; and
- (b) if so, the details and the present status thereof, location-wise?

ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR STEEL (SHRI VISHNU DEO SAI)

- (a) No, Madam.
- (b) Does not arise, in view of (a) above.
- ********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5741 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Introduction of MOOC System
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: M. CHANDRAKASI

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5741 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02.04.2018

## Introduction of MOOC System

5741. SHRI M. CHANDRAKASI:

Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has framed any policy on Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) system in the country ;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  regarding  introduction  and  conduct  of  MOOC  system  in  the country; and
- (c) the  likely  impact/advantages  of  MOOC  in  education  system  especially  distance education in the country?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

## (DR. SATYA PAL SINGH)

(a)  &  (b) Ministry  of  Human  Resource  Development  (MHRD)  has  launched  an open holistic  MOOC  Platform called  'Study  Webs  of  Active  Learning  for  Young  Aspiring Minds' (SWAYAM) to enable free online learning. The Courses in SWAYAM cover most of the disciplines from Senior Schooling (9th -12th) to Post Graduation level in the field of Science,  Social  Science,  Language,  Humanities,  Engineering,  Management  and Teacher Training. Till date, about 1000 MOOCs courses have been listed on SWAYAM in  which  about  30  Lakhs  students  have  got  enrolled.  UGC  and  AICTE  have  issued regulations for transfer of credits for the students.

- (c)  The  three  cardinal  principles  of  Education  Policy  viz.,  access,  equity  and  quality would  be  achieved  by  providing  high  quality  e-content  to  all  learners  in  the  country through MOOCs courses running on SWAYAM.

*********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5740 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Production of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: KAPIL MORESHWAR PATIL

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5740

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 2 nd  APRIL, 2018

## PRODUCTION OF PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS

## 5740.   SHRI KAPIL MORESHWAR PATIL :

पेट्रोल ियम और प्राक ृ तिक गैस मंत्री

## Will the Minister of PETROLEUM & NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

- (a)        the  number  of  places  where  exploration  and  drilling  work  has  been  undertaken  for extraction of petroleum and natural gas during the 2015-16 and 2016-17, institution-wise;
- (b)   the details of profit/loss of the said institutions during the said period, institution-wise; and
- (c)   the specific measures being taken by the Government to fulfil adequate requirement of petroleum and natural gas in the country?

## ANSWER

पेट्रोल ियम और प्राक ृ तिक गैस मंत्रािय में मंत्री ( प्रााप्र ामेर्मध ीी )

## MINISTER IN THE MINISTRY OF PETROLEUM & NATURAL GAS (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- (a)  Exploration  and  drilling  work  for  extraction  of  petroleum  and  natural  gas  has  been undertaken by Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Limited, Oil India Limited (OIL) and Pvt./JV companies during the year 2015-16 and 2016-17 in the State of Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal  Pradesh,  Assam,  Tripura,  Mizoram,  West  Bengal,  Himachal  Pradesh,  Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan  and offshore areas of east and west coast of the country.
- (b) The details of profit after tax earned by ONGC and OIL during the period 2015-16 and 2016-17 are as under:-

(Rs.in Crore)

| Year    | ONGC   |     OIL |
|---------|--------|---------|
| 2015-16 | 16,140 | 2330.11 |
| 2016-17 | 17,900 | 1548.68 |

- (c)   Government has taken various steps to enhance the exploration and production of oil and gas in the country. These are as follows:
- i. Appraisal  of  un-appraised  Areas  in  various  sedimentary  basins  etc  under  National Seismic Program and Multi-client Geo-scientific Surveys/activities in order to enable systematic exploration in these areas
- ii. Re-Assessment of Hydrocarbon Resources of the country
- iii. Implementation  of  Hydrocarbon  Exploration  Licensing  Policy  (HELP)  and  Open Acreage Licensing Policy  (OALP)
- iv. Assimilation and availability  of Geo-scientific data  through National data repository (NDR)
- v. Early Monetization of Un-Monetized Discoveries / Fields under DSF Policy.
- vi. Extension of Existing PSCs
- vii. Unconventional hydrocarbon resource development
- viii. Grant of Marketing Freedom for gas produced from difficult areas

*********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5739 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Teachers Vacancy
Ministry: HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Asked by: PRABHAS KUMAR SINGH

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5739 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02.04.2018

## Teachers Vacancy

## 5739. DR. PRABHAS KUMAR SINGH:

## Will the Minister of HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has any proposal to set up Special Committee to attract meritorious teachers in Centrally funded institutions to fill up large vacancies;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has received complaints regarding selection of media persons as faculty in National Institutions including Indian Institute of Technology (IITs);
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the steps taken by the Government in this regard?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT (DR. SATYA PAL SINGH)

- (a) & (b): Government  of  India  had  constituted  a  Pay  Review  Committee  under  the chairmanship  of  Prof.  Ashok  Misra  in  respect  of  Centrally  Funded  Technical  Institutions (CFTIs) to consider the revision of pay scales for academic, scientific/design and other staff. The  committee  in  one  of  its  recommendation  in  its  report  recommended  that  the  faculty members with less than 3 years relevant experience may be given the alternate designation of  'Assistant  Professor  Grade-II  '  instead  of  'Assistant  Professor  on  Contractual  Basis'. This  is  expected  to  encourage  more  faculty  candidates  to  join  the  CFTIs  as  Assistant Professor Grade II. After 3 years, the faculty member will be assessed and if found suitable will  move  to  the  higher  scale  with  designation  as  Assistant  Professor  Grade-I.  The movement from Grade-II to Grade-I will be performance based and not automatic.
- (c) to (e): No madam, does not arise.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5737 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: MoU with GAIL on Skill Development
Ministry: SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Asked by: ADVOCATE NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5737 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02.04.2018

## MOU WITH GAIL ON SKILL DEVELOPMENT

## 5737. ADV. NARENDRA KESHAV SAWAIKAR:

## Will  the  Minister  of  SKILL  DEVELOPMENT  AND  ENTREPRENEURSHIP be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) have signed an agreement with the Gas Authority of India Ltd. (GAIL) to promote and enhance skill development activities;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the  extent  to  which  job  opportunities  are  likely  to  be  created  as  a  result thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER IN THE MINISTRY OF SKILL DEVELOPMENT AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a) to (c) National  Skill  Development  Corporation  (NSDC)  has  signed  an  MoU with Gas Authority of India (GAIL) wherein both parties have agreed to collaborate on  implementation  of  Skill  Development  activities  connected  with  Urja  Ganga  Gas Pipeline Project. The aim of the project is to conduct Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) and required bridge course for 1,200 candidates under 11 different job roles at the  work  site  for  entire  length  of  pipe  line.  The  target  beneficiaries  would  be  the workers already working in different roles in the pipeline project and are without any formal skill training.

******
Lok Sabha Question No. 5736 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Purchase of Stake in Indian Refineries
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: K. GOPAL

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5736 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02 nd  April, 2018

## PURCHASE OF STAKE IN INDIAN REFINERIES

5736. DR. K. GOPAL:

## पैट्रोल ियम और प्राक ृ तिक गैस मंत्री

Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the world's largest oil company proposes to buy stake in existing Indian refineries  and  expansion  projects  as  well  as  in  the  planned  giant  refinery  on  the west coast and if so, the details thereof; and
- (b)  whether  the  west  coast  refinery  and  the  planned  Rs.33000  crore  petrochemical complex had figured in the discussions with the Government of Saudi Arabia and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## पैट्रोल ियम और प्राक ृ तिक गैस मंत्रािय में मंत्री ( श्री धमेन्द्र प्रधान )

MINISTER  OF  PETROLEUM  AND  NATURAL  GAS  (SHRI  DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- a)  &  b): During  a  meeting  of  Minister  for  Petroleum  and  Natural  Gas  with  his counterpart from Saudi Arabia in New Delhi in February 2018, Minister (PNG) invited companies from Saudi Arabia to invest in Indian oil and gas infrastructure projects.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5735 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: ASEAN-India FTA
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: R. PARTHIPAN

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5735 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02 nd  APRIL,2018

## ASEAN-INDIA FTA

## 5735. SHRI R. PARTHIPAN:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वािणÏय एवं उɮयोग मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has noticed that already negotiated Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with ASEAN has hurt the interests of some particular communities such as rubber plantations and palm oil production;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the reaction of the Government in this regard;
- (c) whether the dairy sector in India will also face stiff competition from countries like New Zealand who have a very strong dairy sector and their economy thrives on the same in case the Government progress with the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT; ea=h ¼Jh lh- vkj- pkS/kjh½

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C. R. CHAUDHARY)

## (a) & (b):

- (i)  No,  Madam.  The  India  -  ASEAN  Trade  in  Goods  Agreement  has  not  hurt rubber plantation.   India has not offered any tariff concession on natural rubber (NR) to rubber producing countries under ASEAN-India FTA.

All  the  following  traded  forms  of  NR  are  under  the  Exclusion  Lists  of  the agreements

HS 400110:  Natural Rubber Latex, whether or not pre-vulcanised

HS 400121:  Natural Rubber in Smoked Sheets (RSS)

HS 400122:   Technically Specified Natural Rubber (block rubber)

HS 400129:  Natural Rubber in other forms

(ii)  In  ASEAN  FTA,  palm  oil  has  been  kept  as  special  product  under reduction category and not in the elimination category.

- (c) & (d) India is the leading producer of milk in the world and New Zealand is one  of  the  largest  exporter  of  Dairy  products  in  the  world.  The Government  takes  into  consideration  stakeholder  inputs  including  on the dairy sector while formulating India's position in RCEP negotiations.

****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5734 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-04-02
Subject: Trade Agreements
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: (ADV.) JOICE GEORGE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5734 TO BE ANSWERED ON 02 nd  APRIL,2018

## TRADE AGREEMENTS

## 5734. ADV. JOICE GEORGE:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वािणÏय एवं उɮयोग मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Regional  Comprehensive  Economic  Partnership  (RCEP),  backed  by China, would drastically reduce remaining tariffs across a swathe of Asia and push the existing model of trade and manufacturing as far as it could go;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has expressed concerns about chinese overcapacity and its tendency to dump goods in the background of RCEP;
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) whether the Government is losing faith in free trade agreements and if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT; ea=h ¼Jh lh- vkj- pkS/kjh½

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C. R. CHAUDHARY)

- (a) to  (e)  The  Regional  Comprehensive  Economic  Partnership  (RCEP)  which    is  a proposed  Free  Trade  Agreement  (FTA)  is  centred  around  the  ten  ASEAN  member states and includes their six FTA partners namely India, Australia, China, Japan, New Zealand and Republic of Korea. The RCEP is currently under negotiation and aims to facilitate  and  enhance  trade  in  goods,  services  and  investment  flows  amongst  the participating  countries.    The  Government  takes  into  consideration  the  stakeholder inputs including domestic sensitivities and export opportunities while formulating its position under RCEP.

****