Time to review India's non-tariff measures

It is critical to upgrade domestic systems to achieve greater market access and a level playing field for exporters

The nature of international trade negotiations has increasingly turned non-tariff-based. The spectrum of issues has widened to include investment facilitation and protection, and economic opportunities such as job creation, value addition and technology transfer. Trade agreements are now negotiated on the basis of tariff cuts and non-tariff measures (NTMs). Trading partners’ NTMs lead to rejection of export consignments, placing Indian exporters at a disadvantage. India has therefore expressed concerns on NTMs such as sanitary and phyto-sanitary (SPS) measures and technical barriers to trade (TBTs).

SPS measures are applicable to agricultural products, plants and animals, while TBTs are applicable to other manufactured