Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath told the Parliament that he will raise the issue of import restrictions by Pakistan at the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit early next month in Dhaka. Pakistan continues to restrict 773 Indian goods even after signing the South Asian Free Trade Agreement.

A Pakistani customs notification “surprised” India by imposing tariff on Indian goods based on its earlier import policy order. Since SAFTA is not an appellate panel dealing with bilateral disputes, an emergency meeting of the SAFTA Ministerial Council will discuss this matter.