Zero tariff US deal will destroy Indian farmers: Charuni

Jind: Farmers staged a major protest in Jind on Friday against the trade deal between India and the United States, and alleged that if India opens its agricultural market to the United States at zero tariff, it will create a serious threat to the livelihood of Indian farmers. They stated that this deal will benefit large foreign agricultural corporates, while small and marginal farmers in the country will end up paying the heaviest price.

"If foreign farming is given free access in India, the consequences will be disastrous for Indian agriculture," said a farmer leader. "We are planning a a major agitation in Kurukshetra on March 23," he added.


Farmer leader Gurnam Singh Charuni, who reached Jind on Friday, said that goods worth Rs 45 lakh crore will now come to India from the United States, including several products such as pulses, soybeans, dairy products, poultry farm products, and others at zero tariff. He alleged that the United States threatened the Indian govt, after which Prime Minister Modi bowed down under pressure.

He pointed out that the land area of the United States is 7 times larger than India, but its population is 4 times smaller. "In India, 82% of farmers own less than 2.5 acres of land, whereas even a small farmer in the United States owns thousands of acres. American farmers operate like businessmen. If they enter India, the corporate system will dominate, and local farmers will be ruined," he added.

He alleged, "Prime Minister Modi is afraid of the United States and has surrendered. If American grain enters India tax-free, neither Indian farming nor Indian farmers will survive."

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