'Farmers, agri sector should be kept in mind for trade deals': RSS-affiliate union reacts to 25% US tariff on India

New Delhi: India’s food security and interest of agriculture sector and dairy farmers should be kept in mind in negotiating trade deal with the US in a multi-polar world where every country seeks to protects it’s interest, RSS affiliate Swadeshi Jagran Manch said on Wednesday reacting to tariffs imposed by US President on India goods and services.

Ashwani Mahajan of the SJM said that the WTO Rules should govern trade deals and any government getting into a trade deal with a country should not affect trade deals with another. US president Donald Trump in his social media post mentioned that India buys its weapon from Russia. 

“We are all sovereigns and we are free to do trade with any country. Russian oil is cheap and that helps us check our inflation. This is no longer a unipolar world. Every country looks out for its own interest,” Mahajan said. 

The SJM has asked the government to keep agriculture and dairy out of the ambit of the trade deal. “Agriculture is the lifeline of India, and we will have to keep in mind food security issues. We will also have to look out for the interests of our dairy farmers,” he added.

BJP spokesperson Gopal Agarwal said that the government is taking care of India’s interests.

“The final decisions are yet to be taken and we will have a clearer picture then. The government only works in national interest, and we are also looking at FTAs with other countries. These negotiations are not final; this is a work in progress,” Agarwal said.