New Delhi, February 26 The Samyukt Kisan Morcha announced on Thursday the launch of two nationwide campaigns to pressure state governments to oppose the proposed India-US trade deal, seeking the dismissal of Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and pushing for amendments to the GST law to "restore fiscal autonomy" for states.
In a press release, the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) said that delegations comprising members of its state and national committees will meet chief ministers and leaders of the opposition in all the states and seek special Assembly sessions to adopt resolutions on the issues raised by the farmers' body.
The SKM, in a memorandum, urged the state governments to ask the Centre not to sign what it termed an "anti-national US trade deal", dismiss Goyal for "betraying the interests of farmers", and withdraw a letter from the Union finance ministry asking the states to end bonus payments on wheat and paddy.
India and the US, earlier this month, agreed on a framework to finalise an interim trade deal, under which Washington will cut down tariffs to 18 per cent. To sign and implement the first phase of the bilateral trade agreement, the framework has to be converted into a legal document.
The SKM also demanded the repeal of the four labour codes and the VB G RAM G Act, and the restoration of the rural employment guarantee law under the now-scrapped Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREG Act).
As part of its campaign titled ‘Strong states for strong India’, the farmers' collective called for amending the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Act, 2017, and restoring the taxation powers of the states and increasing their share in the divisible pool of central taxes to 60 per cent.
Arguing that agriculture is a state subject under the Constitution, the SKM said states should enact laws to guarantee minimum support price (MSP) at C2+50 per cent for all crops with assured procurement, and provide comprehensive loan waivers to address rural indebtedness and farmer suicides.
In the memorandum addressed to chief ministers and LoPs, the SKM alleged that recent policy measures of the Centre – including the National Cooperation Policy 2025, draft National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing, Seed Bill 2025, Electricity Amendment Bill 2025 and the proposed US trade deal – infringed upon the states' constitutional powers over agriculture.
Citing the Economic Survey 2025-26 tabled in Parliament by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on January 29, the SKM claimed the number of revenue surplus states had declined from 19 in 2018-19 to 11 in 2025-26.
It also claimed the share of manufacturing in the GDP had fallen from over 16 per cent in 2014 to below 13 per cent in 2024-25, alleging that the ‘Make in India’ initiative had failed to achieve its stated objectives.
The SKM's national council, which met in Kurukshetra, Haryana, on February 24, resolved to intensify protests against what it described as "corporatisation of agriculture" and "economic colonisation" through trade and policy changes.
The farmers' body said it expects the chief ministers to "pay heed to the fair and just demands" and convene special sessions to pass resolutions urging the Centre to reconsider the measures flagged by the SKM.
