Staff Reporter / NEW DELHI
Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal today said that India refused to be the part of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement in the larger national interest.
Addressing media here today, Mr. Goyal said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has taken this historic step in the interests of the farmers and medium and small scale industries. He said, India strongly put forth its key demands before the member countries and made it clear that India will not compromise with its national interest. He said, balanced trade deficit, better market access of the Indian goods and services and protection of the industries from the unfair trade practices were the key demands of India.
Condemning the attacks of the opposition parties, Mr. Goyal said, it was the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Government which started the deliberations at the RCEP forum and they took so many decisions which proved detrimental to the country.
He said, during the ten-year period from 2004 to 2014, India trade deficit jumped almost eleven hundred per cent from 7 billion dollars to 78 billion dollars with the member countries of RCEP. He added that, this government is correcting the mistakes of the Congress-led UPA government and making all the efforts to improve the economic condition of the country.