Sending a strong message the day after US President Donald Trump ratcheted up the tariff war against India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed that India will never compromise with the interests of its farmers and fishermen.
The Prime Minister said that while he knows he will “have to pay the price”, he was ready to do it for farmers.
Addressing the MS Swaminathan Centenary International Conference at Delhi, the Prime Minister said, “The interest of farmers is our top priority. India will never compromise with the interests of its farmers, livestock holders, and fishermen. And I know that I will have to pay a huge price for this personally, but I am ready. India is ready, for the sake of the country’s farmers, fishermen and livestock holders,” the Prime Minister said, minutes after Trump’s tariffs kicked in.
Paying his respects to MS Swaminathan, the architect of the Green Revolution, the Prime Minister said, “Building on the legacy of food security, the next frontier for our agricultural scientists is ensuring nutritional security for all.”
India exports a wide variety of agricultural products to the US and is one of the sectors set to bear the brunt of Trump’s tariffs.
Donald Trump yesterday announced an extra 25 per cent tariff on Indian exports as ‘penalty’ for New Delhi continuing to import Russian crude oil. Earlier, US had imposed 25 per cent tariffs on Indian exports on July 20.
With the total tariffs on Indian exports to the US rising to 50 per cent, the Ministry of External Affairs responded that the US targeting India over Russian oil imports is “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable”.
We have already made clear our position on these issues, including the fact that our imports are based on market factors and done with the overall objective of ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion people of India. It is therefore extremely unfortunate that the US should choose to impose additional tariffs on India for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest,” it said, stressing that India “will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests”.
Ties between India and the US have been uneasy in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, India’s counterstrike after the Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam that left 26 innocents dead. Trump has repeatedly claimed that he brokered the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, a claim denied by the Narendra Modi government. “We had said from day one that our action was non-escalatory. No leader in the world asked us to stop Operation Sindoor,” Prime Minister Modi said during the Operation Sindoor debate in Parliament. Tariff hikes have followed these claims.
Trump’s tariffs also play out against the backdrop of the pause on talks on an India-US trade deal. Washington DC was pushing for more access to India’s agricultural market, a move New Delhi has resisted to safeguard farmers.