SKM to enlist 10 lakh farmer volunteers to press for FTA rollback

The Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), an umbrella platform representing around 500 farmers' organisations, has announced plans to recruit one million young farmer volunteers, including 2.5 lakh women, to campaign against bilateral and multilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) signed or proposed by India.

As part of the mobilisation drive, the SKM will organise kisan panchayats in one lakh villages during September and October. The panchayats are intended to build grassroots opposition to the trade pacts and press the government to cancel all such agreements.

Addressing reporters on Thursday, SKM leaders said their delegations have already met over 100 Union Ministers, MPs, and MLAs across the country with a charter of demands. They have also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking an appointment, but claimed the Prime Minister's Office has not responded. The leaders expressed disappointment over the lack of engagement, noting that farmers constitute about 65% of the population.

The SKM also recalled that written assurances made during the withdrawal of the year-long farmers' protest in 2021 — including a farm loan waiver and legal guarantee for minimum support price — remain unfulfilled. To mark the next phase of their campaign, the organisation will hold Maha Panchayats in one lakh villages on October 3, 2026, observed as Lakhimpur Kheri Martyrs Day.

A list of the 10 lakh enrolled volunteers is expected to be released thereafter, and the SKM plans to restart its struggle from November 26, 2026. The National Council and General Body of the SKM will convene in Karnal, Haryana on October 12 to finalise the roadmap for resuming the agitation if the government continues to ignore the farmers' demands.