My dear friend, 1st.every party including BJP opposed GATT.(BJP was part of opposition then).But no one today talks of it bcoz the evil effects of GATT as predicted didnot occur & today all parties have put the issue under the carpet. 2nd. We r only about 10 yrs into liberalisation whereas the West had 100 yrs headstart before us. We didnot have such luxury of time nor money as the West. So the best option was to buy off technology & worthwhile western companies up for grabs & become world players.We have just begun. In time, we will start using their R&D base. If we go by ur logic of setting R&D first, our companies would be bankrupt by now. When someone has already invented the circle, why should we waste time,money & efforts to reinvent the same. 3rd. Do not forget,change in Patent acts is also helping Indian companies. Pls also refer to the recent court ruling on patents. Inspite of this our Pharma companies r on an onward rise worldwide for offering cheap medicines. The increase in cost of medicines is not on account of patents, inflation has also played a big part in it but had we not liberalised the effect of inflation would have been many folds higher by now.Plz Name a medicine whose price has shot up bcoz of Patent laws.4th ur contention on the farmers is partly true, as of today.But again, over the next 5 yrs or so u will see the farmer also being propped up by the reforms in the agri sector. Instead of merely cribbing,U must have the foresight to view the future.
