The Hindu : India-Pakistan trade barriers meaningless, says Shourie

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Mar 04, 2004

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India-Pakistan trade barriers meaningless, says Shourie

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, MARCH 3. The Union Disinvestment Minister, Arun Shourie, today described the existing barriers to Indo-Pak trade as `meaningless' even as he pointed to the fact that third country and contraband trade is about ten times higher than the $250 million through the official route.

Speaking at the inaugural of the first ever `Made in Pakistan' exhibition organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), he said there was tremendous potential for increasing bilateral trade between the two countries.

Among the areas identified by him for growth include tourism, energy exchange and high-end manufacturing goods. Referring to the diversion of official trade, he said the colossal loss of government revenue by way of customs duty to both countries is glaring.

Mr. Shourie suggested a three-pronged strategy to spur overall development in the region, First, he said development required unwavering focus bereft of hostility, as hostility distracts from the focus on development.

Second, there was great benefit in opening up the markets as it would enable the two countries to become more competitive in the global economic environment.

Third, he pointed to the huge potential that needed to be tapped in the areas of tourism, energy exchange and high end manufacturing goods.

Outlining the three imperatives for the future, he said long term relationships could not survive by calculating gains and losses on every-day basis.

Second, he felt that there was a need for steadier business-linkages keeping in view the long-term interest of overall development of both regions.

Third, he drew the attention of business leaders of both countries to look at the way power got transferred from state apparatus to outside. It was therefore imperative to strengthen business linkages in all possible sectors, which would have a beneficial impact on development, he said.

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