The Government has made it clear that India will not compromise on food security issue during World Trade Organization’s Inter Ministerial meeting scheduled to be held in Bali from December 3 to 6.
India is sending a 30 member delegation to be led by the Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma. The Union Cabinet, in its meeting on Thursday, mandated Sharma to negotiate India’s stand in Bali meeting. On Friday, he said that India will secure and protect the right to food security of poor people and the right to sustenance of farmers.
Now, it is reliably learnt that he is going to unequivocally convey to his interlocutors that India’s concerns on food security are non-negotiable. “He is likely to raise the issue of subsistence farmers of India strongly in the G-33 (group of 33 countries) meeting being convened tomorrow ahead of the ministerial meeting,” a Government source said.
Sharma has dropped hints that India will be persuasive and constructive, yet firm on the core agenda of food security. Sources also told that he will underscore the fact the Bali ministerial must have a fair and balanced outcome, which addresses the concerns of developing countries adequately, especially so on food security. India’s public stock holding programme, for public distribution system cannot be compromised for minor gains of the developed countries, they added.
He is likely to underscore India’s commitment for the Least Developed Countries or LDC (24 countries) agenda where India has taken a unilateral decision for zero duty access covering 96.2 per cent of tariff lines. India will demonstrate is constructive engagement, as it has unequivocally endorsed 3 out of the 5 issues under consideration- LDC issues, tariff rate quota and export competition.
It is also learnt that he will pitch for a balanced outcome which addresses India’s food security concerns and not just an outcome which addresses the interests of the strong exporting economies of the developed world. However, sources said that Sharma’s stance is likely to face strong head winds in Bali with the developed countries likely to oppose a lasting agreement on food security.