New Delhi, Apr 1 (PTI) India on Friday informed the World Trade Organisation that it has used the peace clause of the WTO to provide excess support measures to rice farmers for marketing year 2020-21 in order to meet the domestic food security needs of its poor population.

Under the peace clause, WTO (World Trade Organisation) member countries are refrained from challenging any breach in the prescribed subsidy ceiling given by a developing nation at the dispute settlement forum of the Geneva-based organisation.

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Subsidies over and above the prescribed ceiling are seen as trade distorting. The limit is fixed at 10 per cent of the value of food production for developing countries like India.

According to the notification of the WTO, "India wishes to notify" the committee on agriculture that it has "exceeded" the de minimis level of the subsidy cap for rice for the marketing year 2020-2021.

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The value of its rice production was USD 45.57 billion in 2020-21, and for that it provided subsidies worth USD 6.9 billion.

India's "breach" of commitment for rice, a traditional staple food crop, under a provision of the agreement on agriculture arises from support provided under public stockholding programmes for food security purposes, it said.

Stocks under the programme are acquired and released in order to meet the domestic food security needs of India's poor and vulnerable population, and not to impede commercial trade or food security of others, it said.

"For these reasons, the breach of the de minimis limits for rice is covered by the peace clause set out in the Bali ministerial decision on public stockholding for food security purposes," it added.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)