No decision to review MFN status to Pakistan: Govt

Nirmala Sitharaman said under GATT, every WTO member country has to accord MFN status to all other member nations

The government on Wednesday said that no decision has been taken to review the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status granted to Pakistan.

"No decision has been taken to review the MFN status provided to Pakistan," Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

She was replying to a question whether India has reviewed/will review MFN status it extended unilaterally to Pakistan two decades ago, in response to the recent attack on the Uri military camp.

She said under the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, every WTO member country has to accord MFN status to all other member nations.

Replying to a separate question, she said no proposal has been finalised to simplify foreign direct investment rules for the e-commerce sector.

"No such proposal has been finalised by the government," she added.

Gems and Jewellery Export Promotion Council and Bharat Diamond Bourse have set up a joint grievance redressal committee to hear complaints of undisclosed mixing of natural and synthetic diamonds in polished form, she replied to a question on diamond.

"The committee has received complaints from within the trade regarding mixing of natural diamond parcels with synthetic diamonds," she said.

In three cases, she said, the committee has found parties guilty of mixing and were penalised in accordance with the defined framework of the committee.

"To ensure consumer confidence and growth of the industry, a framework has been created and actions identified to ensure that natural and lab grown diamonds co-exist in a clearly differentiated and therefore healthy, transparent and fair manner each with its own ecosystem," the minister added.