Chandigarh, March 10 Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann cautioned on Tuesday that the interim India-US trade agreement would open India's agricultural markets to heavily subsidized American produce, which would leave farmers in Punjab and other parts of the country struggling to compete.
While concluding a debate on a resolution moved by Agriculture Minister Gurmeet Singh Khudian in the House, the CM said the trade deal was a "threat" to the country's agricultural sovereignty and could place India's farming sector at the "mercy of foreign powers".
The Punjab Vidhan Sabha unanimously passed a resolution against the India-US trade deal.
Mann said, "The India-US agreement is even more dangerous than the three controversial farm laws brought by the Modi government and can severely harm India's agriculture. This agreement can destroy Indian agriculture, and the agriculture sector must be kept completely outside it."
He further pointed out that states had neither been consulted nor informed about the proposed agreement.
"No state government has been consulted or even informed about the India-US agreement so far. It is unclear what was the prime minister's compulsion in the matter. One begins to wonder whether India's decisions are now being influenced by the White House and whether the Union government's remote is in foreign hands," he said.
The manner in which major developments are communicated has also raised serious questions, he said.
"When the India-Pakistan ceasefire took place (Operation Sindoor last year), the information was first shared by Donald Trump through a tweet (on X), and India came to know about it later. This situation reflects poorly on the functioning of the government," he said.
Expressing concern over the agricultural implications of the trade agreement, the CM said the agricultural structure in the US is vastly different from that in India.
"Agriculture in the United States operates on large landholdings, higher subsidies and economies of scale, enabling producers to export at lower prices. In such a scenario, farmers in Punjab will find it extremely difficult to compete with American agricultural products."
He pointed out that soybean meal from the US would reportedly be imported in huge quantities for cattle feed.
"Punjab cultivates around 1.25 lakh hectares of maize, and both maize and soybean crops could be adversely affected by this pact. Similarly, cotton imports from the US may impact farmers in Punjab, where cotton is grown on about 2.5 lakh acres," the CM said.
Highlighting the disparity in farm sizes and subsidies, Mann said, "In the US, the average farmer owns about 500 acres of land, and American farmers receive around 35 per cent more subsidy than Indian farmers. In contrast, farmers in Punjab typically own only two to two-and-a-half acres of land, making competition extremely difficult."
He also warned that intellectual property provisions could prevent farmers from saving seeds for the next crop season.
"Farmers may not be allowed to save seeds for the next crop season as seeds would come under patent protection. Farmers would effectively become customers of multinational corporations, and seed dealers would be required to obtain fresh licences. This agreement opens the doors for foreign companies to dominate the agricultural sector," the CM said.
Mann further expressed concern that the share of agriculture in the Union Budget had declined sharply.
"Agriculture once received about 25 per cent of the Union Budget, but it has now been reduced to around 7 per cent. At the same time, Indian fruits and agricultural products face strict testing abroad, while products imported from the US are often cleared through laboratories approved there," he observed.
He said the Centre's approach toward Punjab has reflected consistent neglect.
"While Punjab did not receive adequate funds during floods, financial aid was provided to Afghanistan. The Centre has also been withholding funds related to the Rural Development Fund (RDF), GST and the National Health Mission from Punjab," he said.