New Delhi, 03 November (H.S.): Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Tuesday asserted that India has never opened its dairy sector to foreign companies or other countries under any free trade agreement (FTA) and will not permit the import of genetically modified (GM) products in the future either.

Addressing students at Kirori Mal College in New Delhi, Piyush Goyal said India had never compromised on sensitive products in its trade agreements and had consistently safeguarded the interests of farmers, fishermen and micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

Responding to a question on trade agreements, the minister said India remained particularly cautious about opening its markets to certain agricultural products and commodities in which the country held a strong competitive position, including marine products. He emphasised that the dairy sector was especially sensitive and had not been opened to any country so far.

“We are very sensitive about opening our markets in the case of certain agricultural products and some commodities in which we have a strong position, such as marine products. We are particularly sensitive about opening our dairy sector. In fact, we have not opened it to anyone to date,” Goyal said.

The Commerce Minister also reiterated India's position on genetically modified products, saying the country had never permitted their entry and would maintain the same policy in the future.

“We are very sensitive about allowing any GM products into India. We have never permitted it, and we will not do so in the future either. We are also mindful of our religious sensitivities,” he said.

Piyush Goyal further explained that dairy products manufactured in several foreign countries often involve the use of calf meat or rennet during production. India does not permit such practices without stringent safeguards, he said, stressing that strict certification requirements were necessary to ensure that the religious sentiments of a large section of the population were not hurt.

“Dairy products are often manufactured abroad using calf meat or rennet. We do not permit this in India. Strict certification is required to ensure that the religious sentiments of a large section of our population are not offended,” the minister said.

He said the government's objective was to create new employment opportunities and secure wider markets for Indian products in which the country enjoyed a competitive advantage. Such efforts, he added, were aimed at benefiting a broad section of society, including MSMEs, farmers and the agricultural sector.

Speaking about India's export performance, Piyush Goyal said the country was targeting merchandise and services exports worth USD 1 trillion in the financial year 2026-27. India's exports reached approximately USD 480 billion during April-September 2026, registering year-on-year growth of around 14 per cent, he said.

To achieve the annual target, India would need to export another USD 520 billion during the remaining six months, the minister noted. He also indicated that export performance in October had been encouraging, adding that the official trade figures for the month would be released around the middle of November.

Asked about China's restrictions on exports of tunnel-boring machines,Piyush Goyal said that if supplies of these machines were affected, India would work towards manufacturing them domestically. He added that the country had not sought assistance from others even when access to rare earth elements was restricted.

The minister also said India was working with aircraft manufacturers Embraer, Airbus and Boeing to increase the availability of aircraft in the country. This would help strengthen the aviation sector and give a boost to tourism, he added.

In a post on X, Piyush Goyal said, “No matter what obstacles come in the way of India's progress, we can break every chain.” He added that he had interacted with students at the college, popularly associated with actor Amitabh Bachchan, and discussed India's development journey with them.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar