Farmers take out rally against India-US trade deal in Chandigarh

Chandigarh, Jul 10 (PTI) Farmer groups on Friday drove scores of tractor-trolleys, buses, jeeps and other vehicles on city roads here to protest against the proposed India-US trade agreement and other issues including the recent increase in petrol and diesel prices. Farmers, under the banner of the BKU (Ekta Ugrahan) and another farmer outfit, took out a rally from Sector 34 to Matka Chowk. Many roads witnessed bottlenecks due to the rally, with some commuters claiming they had to wait for long in the afternoon to pick up their children from schools. Long queues of vehicles were seen on some roads. Police issued an advisory to use alternate routes during the protest period on Friday. Farmer groups alleged that the India-US trade agreement would harm farmers, labourers, small traders and youth. BKU (Ekta Ugrahan)'s president Joginder Singh Ugrahan said their protest was related to the deal and other issues including recent increase in petrol and diesel prices. Farmers claimed that the government's trade policies favoured multinational companies and global trade interests at the cost of farmers and the dairy sector. The protesters stated that American farmers receive large-scale government support and operate on a larger scale, making competition difficult for Indian farmers who mostly have small landholdings. They alleged that the agreement could result in large-scale entry of agricultural products, pulses, fruits, vegetables and other food items into Indian markets, which may further impact farmers' income and the agricultural economy. The protesters demanded cancellation of the India-US trade agreement. PTI SUN SKY SKY