Ujal Singh Bhatia

A Jamshedpur old boy will soon play arbiter for the world’s most powerful trade body.

Ujal Singh Bhatia (61) who grew up at Kadma’s Air Base Colony and studied in Loyola School in the 1960s, is now the only Indian at World Trade Organisation (WTO)’s appellate body that looks into disputes of member governments.

A former Indian ambassador to the WTO headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, between 2004 and 2010, he is now appointed as one of the seven members of the appellate body. Constituted in 1995, it hears appeals from panel reports related to disputes and alleged violations of inter-country agreements.

Bhatia was chosen according to WTO’s dispute settlement understanding (DSU) that stipulates that the appellate body shall comprise persons of recognised authority, with expertise in law, international trade and agreements of the global trade outfit.

While the appointment was issued on November 18, Bhatia has been awarded a four-year tenure starting December 11, 2011.

Currently, the independent consultant and academic is engaged in developing a policy framework for Indian agricultural investments overseas. Bhatia also works with the Commonwealth Secretariat on multilateral trade issues.

“It is a matter of great honour that a family member has been so successful globally. He has made India proud,” said Mukhtyar Singh, a relative.

Bhatia, an alumnus of the 1967 Loyola School batch, has had a distinguished academic career. After school, Bhatia went to New Delhi’s Shriram College of Commerce and Delhi School of Economics for graduation and postgraduation, respectively. He also holds a master’s degree in economics from the University of Manchester. He was also inducted in the elite IAS corps in 1974.

In the 1990s, when the Indian economy opened up to the world, the economist served as joint secretary in the Union ministry of commerce, where he focused on the legal aspects of international trade. He was also joint secretary of the Union ministry of information and broadcasting.