Senior Congress leader from Punjab and former Health Minister Balbir Singh Sidhu today slammed the Modi government over the proposed India–US trade deal, calling it a serious threat to Punjab’s farming economy, dairy sector and small industries. Balbir Singh Sidhu said Punjab’s farmers are already under immense pressure due to rising costs and falling incomes, and opening Indian markets to subsidised U.S. agricultural imports will further depress crop prices and harm small and marginal farmers.
He warned that such policies favour big corporations while ignoring ground realities in agrarian states like Punjab. Raising strong objections over dairy farming, Sidhu said dairy provides daily income to lakhs of rural families in Punjab.
Any opening of the sector under the trade deal could lead to cheap milk powder and dairy imports, crashing procurement prices and weakening the cooperative model that sustains farmers. He also cautioned that Punjab’s small and medium industries will suffer due to unfair competition from large, subsidised American companies, leading to job losses in towns and industrial clusters.
Questioning the Modi government’s claims of safeguarding farmers, Sidhu said there is no legal guarantee on MSP and no transparency in the trade negotiations. “This deal puts corporate interests above Punjab’s farmers, dairy producers and small businesses.
Congress will firmly oppose any agreement that sacrifices livelihoods and economic stability,” he said.