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Establishment of AEZs, and the reduction and rationalisation of non-tariff barriers are steps imperative to hone India’s edge in agriculture, says L Mansingh

To convert Indian agriculture into a sustainable business enterprise, there is an urgent need for updating the Indian farmer with the latest technologies available. Adoption of scientific pre- and post-harvest treatment, and storage and establishment of linkages with international marketing systems will reinforce productivity. Therefore, though India has immense opportunities in agro-exports, certain efforts are required at all levels to tap even a minuscule part of this potential.

Export potential

Despite the obvious handicaps, export of agricultural and allied products from India has been growing at a fairly satisfactory rate. It has increased from Rs 7,760 crore in 1991-92 to Rs 15,959 crore in 1998-99 and Rs 31,030 crore in 2002-03. While the export performance over this period has been quite satisfactory there can be no two opinions about India’s potential to emerge as a major exporter of agricultural and allied products.

Government initiatives

One of the initiatives taken by the Government of India to boost exports has been the introduction of Agri Export Zones (AEZ) in the Exim Policy announced for 2002-07, for end-to-end development of export of specific products from a geographically contiguous area. The scheme has received an enthusiastic response from the various states and as many as 45 AEZs have already been notified so far in different parts of the country.

In recent years, a slowdown in the extension of world trade has led to protectionist tendencies in major markets of the developed countries. This in turn has led to the introduction of non-tariff barriers (NTB) that make it difficult for Indian agro-exports to make their presence felt in these markets. Very often, such NTBs are so diverse and non-transparent that their trade distorting affects are extremely difficult to assess. However, an indicative study conducted by the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade (IIFT) in 1996, indicated that the European Union topped the list in terms of subjecting India's exports to various NTBs. In 1996-97, 50.9 per cent of India's exports to the EU were subjected to either single or multiple NTBs. The figures for Japan and the US were 46.8 per cent and 35.7 per cent respectively.

The Government of India has been aware of the problems faced by the Indian exporters on account of NTBs. All cases that are reported are followed up with exporters as well as the concerned authorities in the importing countries to ascertain the facts and to take remedial measures wherever necessary. Whenever it is found that the NTBs against Indian exports are based on unfair tactics rather than on scientific grounds, the matter is sought to be resolved on a bilateral basis through the Government's initiative.

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