According to the Survey, an inter-ministerial group headed by commerce secretary Prabir Sengupta has also been set up to assess the likely impact of the removal of QRs and to suggest suitable corrective measures.

Further, the WTO discipline permits various trade defence measures to protect the domestic industry from the impact of the QR phase-out. These include anti-subsidy and anti-dumping action and protection under safeguard provisions in case of a surge in imports. In addition, exemptions have been provided to the member-countries for taking care of national security, protecting public morals, human, animal or plant life or health or the conservation of exhaustible resources. Institutional set up to implement all these agreements include the Directorate of Anti-Dumping and Allied Duties and the Directorate of Safeguards.

Adjustments in the tariff rates have already been effected within the bound rates as temporary measures against any surge in imports of specific commodity/product. Besides laying down of Indian quality standards and printing of retail prices in rupees for all imported goods has been made mandatory. For compliance of this requirement, all manufacturers/exporters of these products to India are required to register themselves with the Bureau of Industrial Standards.

The Survey also sought to drive home the point that while imports from specific countries like China have increased during 1999-2000 and during April-October 2000, India's exports have also risen much faster than its imports. For instance, imports from China increased by 17.9 per cent in 1999-2000 and further by 28.22 per cent in the first seven months of the current fiscal. Compared to this, India's exports to China rose by 28.2 per cent in 1999-2000 and by 53.3 per cent in April-October 2000.