I am happy to introduce to you the inaugural issue of the monthly Newsletter titled "India and the WTO". The Trade Policy Division and the Information Division of my Ministry have jointly put together this publication, which, I hope, will prove to be extremely useful in the months to come. We would welcome the reproduction of the information contained in this monthly update in other publications and also by other news media so as to progressively reach an ever widening audience. This newsletter should be considered part of our ongoing exercise to involve more and more people in a national debate on such issues. National debate is imperative - more so, because multilateral trade issues are, by their very nature, contentious and do not lend themselves to easily agreed solutions. There can be divergent views not only among academicians but also among industry associations on our approach to the WTO, towards trade liberalisation and the role that we play in various international bodies. Also, ideas do not remain static; they evolve and change over time.

 Multilateral trade law is built through negotiations. Negotiations necessarily involve balancing of concessions. We gain something in some area and we give something in some other area. It is a process of give and take in which we have to see where our balance of interests lies. Each agreement or a set of agreements must, therefore, be viewed in the overall national perspective.

 I consider it necessary that we hear all opinions, give opportunity to all to express their points of views and weigh and consider all such opinions before arriving at a decision. With regard to WTO issues, we have, over the past several months, endeavoured to closely involve industry associations, professional institutes and associations, experts in the field, research and consultancy organisations. We have held several meeting with industry associations on all major issues, circulated papers to them and sought their inputs on all key matters. WTO Awareness Seminars are being held jointly with industry associations of all major cities. We have funded projects, taken up by various academic and research institutions, on WTO issues, particularly those that have impact on negotiations scheduled to take place in the next two or three years, such as services, and agriculture. Recognising the need to build a corps of lawyers with adequate knowledge of international trade law, we have funded a Chair in the National Law School of India University, Bangalore. Professional Institutions too have helped us greatly. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India and the Institute of Cost and Works Accountants of India, actively participated in the WTO Working Party on Professional Services on disciplines relating to the accountancy sector.

 I hope this newsletter will open another window. One of our principal aims in bringing out this publication is to ensure a regular flow of information to our missions abroad so that they know about development in the WTO and our position on various issues and there are no gaps in terms of communication or knowledge. They must also - in the months and years to come - provide us with information, help us formulate and articulate our views even better and give us insights into the thinking on such issues in the countries of their accreditation.

 I look forward to keen reader participation in this collective endeavour. The first issue is an attempt to present these issues in a manner which would evoke readers’ interest. Over the months, I am sure we will have a structured format which fully meets the requirements and expectations of our readers.