This ICRIER paper examines the ground covered so far by India and the challenges that remain for it to realize the benefits of the South Asian Free Trade Agreement (SAFTA). Resolving issues such as the liberalization of tariffs (including trimming sensitive lists), non-tariff barriers, transport and transit barriers, and customs reforms can maximize the impact of SAFTA for South Asian nations.
Trade agreements—whether multilateral ones through the WTO, plurilateral ones such as the CPTPP, or bilateral agreements between two nations—represent the foundational vehicle through which nations remove trade barriers and deepen trade linkages. This category includes a wide array of GTIPA-member reports examining trade agreements their nations have implemented.