The move is aimed at reaching a settlement with the US for which bilateralnegotiations at the official level are on in Geneva.

However, going by the verdict of the final report of a WTO panel on thedispute with the US on quantitative restrictions on imports, India is toremove them by December 31, 2000. This is after taking into account themore-than-15-month period conceded by it from the adoption by the disputesettlement body of the appellate body report in the case.

But Washington insists that India remove these restrictions in a shortestperiod of three months, while New Delhi prefers a date nearer the deadlineof March 31, 2003.

What has also hastened India to advance the date is the rejection by theappellate body of India's case. In its final report on August 26, it hadupheld the WTO panel ruling and requested the dispute settlement body (DSB)to request India to bring its measures -- maintaining QRs for balance ofpayments reasons -- in conformity with its obligations under the WTOagreements. The report had been accepted by DSB.

If the bilateral negotiations fail, the matter will go for thelong-drawn-out process of arbitration as per WTO rules. Sources said thegradual removal of QRs had in any case been a part of the government'seconomic reforms and trade policy.

Also, India had entered into bilateral agreements with its trading partners,namely European Community, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Switzerland andJapan (as third party) for phased removal of its QRs over a six-year periodfrom April 1, 1997 to March 31, 2003.

As part of this agreement, India had progressively removed its QRs in theannual revision of the export and import policy. During 1997-98, the firstyear of the phase-out plan, 406 items were freed from quantitativerestrictions.

During the second year (1998 -- 99) of this phase-out on March 31, 1999, atotal of 894 items had been made free and 414 items been shifted to thespecial import licence list. In both the cases, India had gone far beyondits commitment to WTO.