India has approached the Saarc Secretariat against Pakistan's decision to trade only a limited number of products with the country under the South Asian Free Trade Area and sought an urgent meeting of Safta Ministerial Council to resolve the issue.

Commerce Minister Kamal Nath has written to Saarc Secretary General Chenkyab Dorji, saying Pakistan's reluctance to conduct trade with India on all items except those on the sensitive list went 'against the letter and spirit of Safta agreement'.

"India is deeply disappointed about Pakistan's decision. Pakistan has to live up to our expectations," Minister of State for Commerce Jairam Ramesh told reporters here.

Although, Safta came into operation on January 1 this year, the Tariff Liberalisation Programme started only on July1. All member countries conduct trade with each other on all items except those on negative list of items on which duties are not reduced.

Pakistan, however, has decided to trade with India on the basis of a list of 773 items under a positive list and has refused to accord Most Favoured Nation status to India.

In his letter to Dorji, Nath said India was of the view that Pakistan's decision was against the letter and spirit of the Safta agreement. "I am sure you would agree with me that Safta has little meaning if Pakistan does not apply Safta to all the items except those tariff lines in the sensitive list to all member countries," Nath said in the letter.

Pakistan's decision is likely to have "serious impact" on the implementation of Safta pact, Nath said, adding "we request you to convene the Safta Ministerial Council Meeting urgently for consideration of this important matter".

Ramesh said under the pact all member countries -- India, Pakistan, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Maldives --were mandated to keep only negative lists and remove movement restrictions on all other items.

Safta does not have a dispute settlement mechanism, unlike some other trade pacts and the WTO, Ramesh said, adding India would have to utilise the available mechanism to draw attention to the nonfulfillment of a basic obligation under the crucial agreement.