Press Trust of India / New Delhi Oct 22, 2009, 15:56 IST
Grievances of plantation growers over India agreeing to cut duties on import of pepper, black tea, coffee and palm oil will be addressed by a ministers' panel next week, an official said.
India is committed to slash duties by about 50 per cent on the politically sensitive items under the Free Trade Agreement it signed with the 10-nation Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) on August 13.
While the duty reduction is to be phased out over a 10-year period, different political parties and the growers' organisations have voiced apprehensions over the damage the trade pact could cause.
After Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma returns from the India-ASEAN and the East Asia Summits in Thailand next week, the Group of Ministers would meet to work out a package for plantation growers to make up for any adverse impact on them.
Defence Minister A K Antony, who hails from Kerala and was among those expressing concerns, has been included in the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.
While growers and political parties have protested India committing to lower the tariffs in the agreement, the country is importing several items at a much lower rate because of domestic scarcity. The duty on palm oil has even been eliminated.
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