India–US Trade Deal: Farmers’ Unions call for nationwide protests on February 12

Several farmers’ organisations, including the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), its non-political offshoot, and the All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), have voiced strong opposition to the recently announced interim trade agreement framework between India and the United States. The groups warned that the deal could harm Indian farmers and announced plans for nationwide protests.

The trade framework, revealed jointly by New Delhi and Washington on Saturday, aims to boost bilateral commerce by easing import duties on a range of products. Under the arrangement, the United States will lower tariffs on Indian exports from 50 per cent to 18 per cent. In return, India has agreed to remove or significantly reduce duties on American industrial goods and several agricultural and food items.

Concerns Over Agricultural Imports

Farmer leaders expressed alarm over the inclusion of multiple agricultural products in the agreement. These include dried distillers’ grains, red sorghum intended for animal feed, tree nuts, soybean oil, wine and spirits, as well as fresh and processed fruits. They argue that increased imports of such goods could hurt domestic producers and expose Indian agriculture to unfair competition from heavily subsidised US agribusinesses.

In a statement released on Saturday, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha accused the government of compromising farmers’ interests, describing the interim trade framework as a move that could open Indian agriculture to large American multinational corporations. The organisation demanded the immediate resignation of Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, alleging that the agreement undermines food security and farmer livelihoods.

Nationwide Protests Announced

Addressing an online press conference, SKM leaders said they would organise protests in villages and rural areas across the country to oppose the trade deal. As part of the demonstrations, they announced plans to burn effigies of US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi to symbolise their resistance to what they termed pro-corporate policies.

Farmer unions also confirmed their support for the general strike scheduled for February 12, calling on workers, farmers and rural communities to unite against policies they believe favour global corporations over local producers.

Government Yet to Respond

As of Saturday, the central government had not issued a detailed response to the criticism from farmer groups. Officials have previously argued that trade liberalisation can create new export opportunities and strengthen India’s position in global markets.

However, farmer organisations remain unconvinced, insisting that any trade agreement involving agricultural imports must include safeguards to protect small and marginal farmers. With protests on the horizon, the interim trade deal is likely to face growing political and social scrutiny in the coming weeks.