By Admin 
A new controversy has arisen regarding the recently announced interim trade deal between India and America. The White House has quietly made changes to its official fact sheet. The most important thing is that the mention of ‘some pulses’ has been removed from the new fact sheet. Besides, the words used regarding India’s proposed purchase of $500 billion have also been changed.
What was written before?
The initial document released on Tuesday said India would reduce or eliminate import duties on a long list of American industrial goods and food-agriculture products. The list included Dried Distillers’ Grains (DDGs), red sorghum, tree nuts, fresh and processed fruits, ‘certain pulses’, soybean oil, wine and spirits. It was also written in the same fact sheet that India has committed to purchase more than $500 billion of American energy, information technology, agriculture, coal and other products.
What changed now?
Many changes have been seen in the updated version available on the White House website. The word ‘committed’ has been changed to ‘intends’. The word ‘agricultural’ has been removed from the list of products. Most importantly, the mention of ‘some pulses’ has been completely removed. There has also been a change regarding digital service tax. Earlier it was said that India will remove this tax, but now this line is not there in the new fact sheet. It has only been said that there will be discussions on digital trade rules.
Why is the issue of pulses important?
India is the largest producer and consumer of pulses in the world. Lakhs of farmers in the country are dependent on the cultivation of pulses. To protect them from losses, India has been imposing high import duty on pulses for a long time. In such a situation, removal of mention of pulses from the fact sheet may be an indication that India has taken a tough stance on this issue.