Context: The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has set up a task force to identify and resolve trade barriers being faced by foreign exporters.

News:

• Indian exports encounter significant barriers in certain products such as chillies, tea, basmati rice, milk, and poultry in the European Union, sesame seeds and apparel in Japan, and food, meat, fish, dairy, and industrial products in China.
• To tackle these challenges, the Commerce Ministry has established a task force.

Objectives:

Identify Trade Barriers:

• Scrutinize barriers and technical obstacles hindering exports.

Enhance Systems and Standards:

• Work towards improving existing systems and standards.

Negotiate Mutual Recognition Agreements (MRAs):

• Strengthen MRAs with various countries to ensure alignment with importing nations' requirements.
• The task force aims to align product standards with the importing countries' specifications to facilitate smoother trade. It addresses issues like delays in registration and various non-tariff barriers.

About Non-Tariff Measures (NTMs): NTMs constitute domestic regulations implemented to safeguard human, animal, or plant health and the environment. They can be categorized as technical or non-technical:

• Technical NTMs: Include regulations, standards, testing, certification, and pre-shipment inspection.
• Non-Technical NTMs: Encompass measures like quotas, import licensing, subsidies, and government procurement restrictions.
• While NTMs are essential for protection, they may become non-tariff barriers (NTBs) when arbitrary and lacking scientific justification, posing obstacles to trade.