India-US trade deal: Congress accepts Amit Shah's debate challenge, flags US maize & cotton imports as blow to farmers

NEW DELHI: Not ruling out a nationwide movement against the Indo-US trade deal and accepting home minister Amit Shah’s challenge for a debate, Congress said the US production of jowar, maize, soybean and cotton is at such a higher scale that their import will completely overwhelm the farmers of India.

AICC spokesman and MP Randeep Surjewala told a press conference that India produces 43 million metric tonnes of maize annually compared to the US’ 425 million MT; India’s annual sorghum output of 5.2 million MT is lower than 8.7 million MT in the US; and India produces 15.3 million tonnes of Soybean as compared to 120 million tonnes by the US.


Surjewala said the US has been looking for a market for its vast production of these grains which the Modi govt has accepted by agreeing to import DDG (processed maize), Soya oil and red sorghum. “What will the farmers of Central India, northern India, western India and some southern states do when these imports come at reduced or zero tariffs,” he asked.

He called the deal a “one-sided and unequal agreement” that undermines India’s sovereignty and domestic economic priorities.

To the challenge thrown by home minister Shah on the trade deal, Surjewala said Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has nominated him to debate the trade deal with the minister and BJP, and urged the ruling party to decide the time and venue.

The Congress MP said cotton poses an equally serious challenge after commerce minister Piyush Goyal’s remark that India too would get Bangladesh-type zero-tariff access to US on textiles in exchange for importing cotton.

Stating that India has surplus cotton produce which it exports to Bangladesh while also satisfying its domestic demand, Surjewala said importing cotton from the US would hurt the cotton producing farmers of Maharashtra, Gujarat, MP, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana. Additionally, he said Bangladesh, which buys 50% of its cotton requirement from India, will now stop those imports and source cotton from the US. “This is called a double whammy,” he remarked.

He said the commitment to remove “non-tariff barriers” means India may allow import of GM agricultural products, and weaken procurement and subsidies for farmers.

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