The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), the country’s largest farmers’ organisation, calls for a nationwide strike on July 9
NEW DELHI — With the July 9 deadline set by US President Donald Trump for finalising the proposed Indo-US COMPACT drawing near, tensions are mounting in India. The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS), the country’s largest farmers’ organisation, has denounced the trade framework as a “death warrant for Indian farmers” and a blow to national sovereignty.
The COMPACT—an acronym for Catalysing Opportunities for Military Partnership, Accelerated Commerce & Technology—was jointly unveiled by President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Touted as a landmark 21st-century partnership, it has instead sparked sharp criticism from farmer groups and opposition parties who see it as a threat to India’s economic autonomy.
In a strongly worded statement, AIKS alleged that the Modi government is capitulating to foreign pressure. “This deal is being negotiated under duress. The United States is using the threat of retaliatory tariffs to force India into submission. This is nothing short of economic coercion,” said AIKS General Secretary Ravula Venkaiah on Friday.
In a bid to assuage public concern, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal reiterated that New Delhi would not be rushed into signing any agreement that does not align with national interests. “We will not enter into any pact based on arbitrary deadlines. Any agreement will be finalised only after it is fully negotiated and deemed to be in India’s interest,” he said, confirming that Indian trade negotiators returned from Washington on Friday.
However, AIKS remains unconvinced. It accused the Modi government of surrendering policy space to Washington, unlike smaller nations such as Vietnam, Cambodia, and Indonesia, which have resisted similar US pressure.
“This government is choosing to serve corporate interests over the livelihoods of Indian farmers,” said Rajan Kshirsagar, President of AIKS.
AIKS pointed to trade data showing a steep rise in US agricultural imports as evidence of the looming threat. Between January and April 2025, India’s agricultural imports from the US surged by 45%, reaching $1.075 billion. Soybean imports alone jumped by a staggering 810%, while imports of cotton and dairy products rose by 122% and 43% respectively.
“The domestic market is being flooded with cheap American agro-commodities, devastating local farmers,” the statement said. AIKS highlighted the case of apple growers in Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh who suffered losses due to the import of 5 lakh tonnes of apples last year. Similarly, the slashing of tariffs on edible oil and soybeans has crashed market prices well below the Minimum Support Price (MSP). The imposition of zero import duty on cotton, the group added, has triggered a collapse in domestic cotton prices.
Agrarian Distress
Calling the current crisis a “man-made disaster,” AIKS linked the worsening agrarian distress to import liberalisation and anti-farmer policies. In Maharashtra alone, 767 farmers died by suicide in the first three months of 2025, the group claimed.
“These are not just numbers. These are lives lost to deliberate policy failures that prioritise global capital over rural livelihoods,” said Kshirsagar.
Beyond trade, AIKS raised alarm over the broader strategic and military implications of the COMPACT, warning that it could erode India’s independence in foreign policy. “This is not an agreement; it’s an imposition,” said the organisation, pointing to recent US diplomatic pressures, including interference in Indo-Pak relations and reports of Indian immigrants being deported from the US in shackles.
“India is being systematically humiliated, and this government is complicit in the erosion of our dignity,” Venkaiah said.
Call for mobilisation
AIKS has called for a massive mobilisation of farmers, trade unions, and civil society organisations in protest against the deal. The group urged widespread participation in the July 9 nationwide strike and agitation jointly called by the Central Trade Unions (CTUs) and the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM).
“This strike is not just about trade. It is a united resistance of India’s working people against a government that is selling the country’s interests to foreign corporations,” the statement said.
Demands being raised as part of the strike include: Legal guarantee of MSP for all crops, withdrawal of the four labour codes and complete loan waivers for farmers and workers. It also includes a demand for a substantial increase in minimum wages and strong action against rising communal violence.
AIKS also rejected Prime Minister Modi’s stated goal of raising bilateral trade with the US to $500 billion by 2030. “This target will only accelerate the collapse of India’s rural economy,” the group warned.
“The farmers of India will not tolerate a trade deal that benefits American agro-corporations at the cost of our villages,” the statement concluded.
