Farmers’ organisations across northern India have intensified their opposition to the proposed India–US trade agreement, organising motorcycle rallies, toll plaza demonstrations and district-level protests while warning that any pact opening India’s agriculture and dairy sectors to greater American access would jeopardise farmers’ livelihoods, food security and the country’s economic sovereignty.
According to The Hindu, farmer groups under the banner of the Desh Bachao Morcha, an umbrella platform comprising unions from several states, organised coordinated motorcycle rallies across Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Similar demonstrations were also held in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand as part of a nationwide mobilisation against the proposed trade agreement.
Farmer leaders have argued that the proposed agreement extends far beyond the import and export of a handful of commodities. They contend that negotiations could encompass agriculture, dairy, industry, digital trade, services, investment, energy, intellectual property rights and broader market access, making it a far-reaching economic arrangement with potentially significant implications for multiple sectors.
A major concern raised by the protesting organisations is the lack of transparency surrounding the negotiations. As reported by The Hindu, Desh Bachao Morcha coordinator Sarwan Singh Pandher questioned why the complete text of the proposed agreement had not been placed in the public domain, arguing that stakeholders were being asked to accept an arrangement whose full implications remained unknown.
Farmer leaders have repeatedly warned that the United States has long sought greater access to India’s agricultural and dairy markets. According to them, any reduction in import duties or easing of market restrictions could expose Indian farmers, particularly small and marginal cultivators, to competition from heavily subsidised American agricultural producers, adversely affecting domestic agriculture, dairy farming and small-scale industries.
The organisations have urged the Union government to prioritise the interests of farmers, agricultural labourers, small traders and domestic industries over external trade commitments. They have also called upon the Centre to safeguard India’s food and economic sovereignty by refraining from entering into any agreement that they believe could undermine rural livelihoods.
The protests have brought together a broad coalition of farmer organisations across states. The Hindu reported that Punjab witnessed participation from groups including the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political), the Azad Kisan Morcha, the Bharatiya Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Organisation and the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Boka Singh Mansa). In Haryana, organisations such as BKU (Chaduni), Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Morcha Haryana and BKU Shaheed Bhagat Singh joined the demonstrations, while farmer groups in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh also staged coordinated protests.
Warning of an escalation if their concerns remain unaddressed, farmer leaders announced that the ongoing mobilisation would culminate in a large “Maha Rally” in New Delhi on July 21.
The agitation gathered further momentum during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Punjab, with several organisations staging demonstrations and raising black flags while reiterating demands for a statutory guarantee of Minimum Support Price (MSP). As reported by The Hindu, activists of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee (KMSC) burned an effigy of the Central government near Amritsar’s Golden Gate, accusing the Centre of pursuing policies that favour corporate interests over farmers and agricultural workers.
KMSC leaders also alleged that district president Salwinder Singh Jania had been placed under house detention to prevent his participation in the protests, warning that such actions would only strengthen the ongoing agitation. They further demanded that the Prime Minister publicly explain how the proposed India–US trade agreement would benefit Indian farmers and agricultural labourers, insisting that any policy encouraging greater corporate control over agriculture was unacceptable.
The organisations simultaneously reiterated their long-standing demand for a legal guarantee of MSP, describing it as indispensable for protecting farmers against fluctuating market prices and ensuring stable agricultural incomes.
Beyond the trade agreement, protesters also criticised the Punjab government’s land pooling policy, alleging that it could facilitate the acquisition of fertile agricultural land for commercial development at the expense of cultivators. Farmer leaders asserted that they would continue resisting the policy until it was withdrawn.
The Kisan Mazdoor Morcha also organised district-level protests across Punjab during the Prime Minister’s visit. According to The Hindu, Sarwan Singh Pandher stated that the organisation would simultaneously raise issues relating to farm loan waivers, the proposed trade agreement, the release of Bandi Singhs, Punjab’s representation in the Bhakra Beas Management Board and the state’s riparian rights over river waters.
Separately, The Indian Express reported that thousands of farmers affiliated with the Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rajewal) organised a large bike and car rally from Mohali to Chandigarh, with more than 500 motorcycles, cars and jeeps participating in the procession. The demonstration witnessed participation from all 23 districts of Punjab, prompting extensive traffic diversions and heightened security arrangements across Chandigarh and adjoining areas.
Addressing the gathering, BKU (Rajewal) president Balbir Singh Rajewal described the proposed India–US Free Trade Agreement as the farmers’ foremost concern, arguing that Indian agriculture would struggle to compete with heavily subsidised agricultural producers in developed economies if the agreement were finalised. He warned that sectors such as agriculture, dairy, poultry and allied rural industries could suffer severe economic consequences.
The rally also highlighted broader concerns affecting Punjab’s agrarian economy. BKU leaders drew attention to deteriorating groundwater quality and increasing contamination by heavy metals, citing health concerns and referring to data indicating the growing burden of cancer in the state. They further accused political parties of remaining preoccupied with electoral politics while neglecting structural challenges confronting farmers, including land acquisition policies, resource management and the proposed trade agreement.
Following the rally, representatives submitted separate memorandums to the Prime Minister, through the Punjab Governor, and to the Punjab Chief Minister, outlining both national and state-specific demands and seeking immediate government intervention.
The protests continued to expand over the following days. As reported by Deccan Chronicle, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) organised demonstrations at more than forty toll plazas across Punjab, allowing vehicles to pass without collecting toll charges as a symbolic act of protest against both the Punjab government’s land pooling policy and the proposed India–US trade agreement.
Farmer leaders participating in the toll plaza demonstrations alleged that the amended land pooling policy sought to transfer fertile agricultural land to corporate interests while simultaneously expressing concern that the proposed trade agreement would adversely affect agriculture, dairy and poultry sectors. They demanded that these sectors be excluded entirely from any future trade pact and warned that the agitation would intensify if both the Centre and the Punjab government failed to address their concerns. Taken together, the protests represent one of the most recent coordinated farmer mobilisations, combining opposition to the proposed India–US trade agreement with broader demands concerning MSP, agricultural policy, land acquisition, indebtedness and rural governance.
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