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Q83 (IAS/2017) Economy › External Sector & Trade › World Trade Organization Official Key

Consider the following statements : 1. India has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of WTO. 2. TFA is a part of WTO's Bali Ministerial Package of 2013. 3. TFA came into force in January 2016. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: A
Explanation

The correct answer is option A (statements 1 and 2 only).

**Statement 1 is correct:** India ratified the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA) in April 2016[1], demonstrating India's commitment to simplifying trade procedures.

**Statement 2 is correct:** Text of the TFA was adopted by WTO members during 2013 Bali Ministerial Conference[2], making it part of the Bali Ministerial Package.

**Statement 3 is incorrect:** The TFA did not come into force in January 2016. The Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), negotiated at WTO, came into force on 22nd February 2017[4]. This was after two-thirds of WTO members had ratified the agreement. The confusion may arise because India ratified it in April 2016, but the global entry into force occurred only in February 2017.

Therefore, only statements 1 and 2 are correct, making option A the right answer.

Sources
  1. [1] https://bsmedia.business-standard.com/_media/bs/data/general-file-upload/2020-02/Economic%20Survey%202018-19-II.pdf
  2. [2] Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > TRADE FACILITATION AGREEMENT (TFA) of WTO > p. 545
  3. [3] https://bsmedia.business-standard.com/_media/bs/data/general-file-upload/2021-01/Economic-Survey-2020-21-Volume-II.pdf
  4. [4] https://bsmedia.business-standard.com/_media/bs/data/general-file-upload/2021-01/Economic-Survey-2020-21-Volume-II.pdf
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PROVENANCE & STUDY PATTERN
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Don’t just practise – reverse-engineer the question. This panel shows where this PYQ came from (books / web), how the examiner broke it into hidden statements, and which nearby micro-concepts you were supposed to learn from it. Treat it like an autopsy of the question: what might have triggered it, which exact lines in the book matter, and what linked ideas you should carry forward to future questions.
Q. Consider the following statements : 1. India has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of WTO. 2. TFA is a part of WTO's Bali M…
At a glance
Origin: Books + Current Affairs Fairness: Low / Borderline fairness Books / CA: 3.3/10 · 6.7/10
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This question demands you track the 'lifecycle' of a treaty, not just its definition. It combines static history (Bali 2013) with dynamic status updates (Ratification/Entry into Force). If a major treaty is in the news, you must know its three milestones: Adoption, Ratification, and Enforcement.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Has India ratified the World Trade Organization's Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA)?
Origin: Web / Current Affairs Fairness: CA heavy Web-answerable

Web source
Presence: 5/5
"India ratified the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation (TFA) in April 2016 and subsequently constituted a National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) with the Cabinet Secretary of India as the Chair."
Why this source?
  • Explicitly states that India ratified the WTO Agreement on Trade Facilitation.
  • Provides the timing of ratification (April 2016) and subsequent actions indicating implementation steps.
Web source
Presence: 3/5
"the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA), negotiated at WTO, came into force on 22nd February 2017. A National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) was, accordingly, constituted in India in August 2016 with"
Why this source?
  • Notes the TFA came into force on 22nd February 2017, situating India's ratification timing relative to entry into force.
  • States that India constituted a National Committee on Trade Facilitation (NCTF) in August 2016, supporting that India took formal steps after ratification.

Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > 2020 > p. 554
Strength: 3/5
“The Global Competitiveness Report is published by the (a) International Monetary Fund (b) United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (c) World Economic Forum (d) World Bank No question • 5. Consider the following statements: • 1. India has ratified the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) of WTO. • 2. TFA is a part of WTO's Bali Ministerial Package of 2013. • 3. TFA came into force in January 2016. Which of the statements given above is/are correct? (a) 1 and 2 only (b) 1 and 3 only (c) 1, 2 and 3 (d) 2 and 3 only 6. With reference to the 'National Intellectual Property Rights Policy', consider the following statements: 1.”
Why relevant

The excerpt presents the specific claim ('India has ratified the TFA') as an exam-style true/false item alongside two factual points about the TFA—showing this is a specific, checkable factual assertion often tested.

How to extend

A student could treat this as a pointer to consult authoritative lists (WTO ratification/acceptance records) or recent government notifications to verify India's status.

Indian Economy, Nitin Singhania .(ed 2nd 2021-22) > Chapter 18: International Economic Institutions > TRADE FACILITATION AGREEMENT (TFA) of WTO > p. 545
Strength: 5/5
“• Need of TFA: Red Tapism poses a burden for moving goods across borders. Trade facilitation, in terms of simplification, modernisation and harmonisation of export and import processes, has therefore emerged as an important issue for the world trading system. This led to the need of TFA.• TFA came into force in 2017. It is the result of Doha Round which occurred in 2001. Text of the TFA was adopted by WTO members during 2013 Bali Ministerial Conference.”
Why relevant

Gives concrete background: the TFA text was adopted at the 2013 Bali Ministerial and came into force in 2016/2017—establishing clear dates after which members could ratify/accept the Agreement.

How to extend

Knowing the adoption and entry-into-force dates, a student can check post-2013/2016 government/WTO actions (notifications of ratification/acceptance) for India.

Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 13: International Organizations > 13.5.3Information Technology Agreement (ITA) > p. 383
Strength: 3/5
“In the early phase of import liberalization, the electronics sector was largely kept out of this exercise, but the situation changed drastically after India, in 1996, joined the Information Technology Agreement (ITA), a plurilateral agreement under the WTO. When the ITA became effective on 1st July 1997, only 29 members had acceded to the agreement. (As of now the number of participants has grown to 82, representing about 97 per cent of world trade in IT products). ITA covers a large number of high technology products, including computers, telecommunication equipment, semiconductors, semiconductor manufacturing and testing equipment, software, scientific instruments, as well as most of the parts and accessories of these products.”
Why relevant

Shows precedent that India has joined/accepted plurilateral WTO agreements in the past (Information Technology Agreement accession in 1996).

How to extend

Using this pattern, a student might infer India’s willingness to join WTO instruments and therefore look for a formal accession/acceptance record for the TFA.

Contemporary World Politics, Textbook in political science for Class XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: International Organisations > WTO > p. 57
Strength: 4/5
“The World Trade Organisation (WTO) is an international organisation which sets the rules for global trade. This organisation was set up in 1995 as the successor to the General Agreement on Trade and Tariffs (GATT) created after the Second World War. It has 164 members (as on 29 July 2016). All decisions are taken unanimously but the major economic powers such as the US, EU and Japan have managed to use the WTO to frame rules of trade to advance their own interests. The developing countries often complain of non-transparent procedures and being pushed around by big powers. India supports an increase in the number of both permanent and non-permanent members.”
Why relevant

Describes the WTO as the institution that manages global trade rules and member decisions—implying ratification/acceptance records would be maintained by the WTO.

How to extend

A student can extend this by checking the WTO's official list of members' notifications/acceptances for the TFA to confirm India's status.

Statement analysis

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Statement analysis

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