Union Budget 2026–27 Anti-Farmer and Anti-Worker, Says All India Kisan Sabha

The All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) has strongly criticised the Union Budget 2026-27, alleging that it once again fails to address the deepening crisis in agriculture and rural livelihoods. In a statement issued after the budget presentation, the farmers’ organisation said the finance minister’s speech largely ignored agriculture, with small and marginal farmers mentioned only once and no reference at all to rural labour.

AIKS pointed out that the criticism comes at a time when the Union government’s own Economic Survey has flagged a slowdown in agricultural growth. According to the survey, agriculture grew at 3.5 per cent in the last quarter of 2025, well below the decadal average of 4.45 per cent, with crop production registering the sharpest decline. Against this backdrop, the organisation said the budget was expected to provide relief and renewed momentum to the sector, but instead proved disappointing.

The total allocation for the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has been pegged at around 1.40 lakh crore rupees, reflecting a nominal increase of just 5.3 per cent over the revised estimates for 2025-26. AIKS said that once inflation is taken into account, this does not amount to any real increase in spending on agriculture.

The farmers’ body also flagged cuts to agricultural research and development. While the Economic Survey acknowledged that Indian crop yields continue to lag behind global averages, making production uncompetitive, the budget reduced allocations to the Department of Agricultural Research and Education from 10,281 crore rupees in the revised estimates for 2025-26 to 9,967 crore rupees in the budget estimates for 2026-27.

AIKS further noted that although the Finance Minister spoke about promoting cash crops such as coconut, cocoa, cashew, nuts and sandalwood in her budget speech, several earlier missions—including those focused on cotton technology, pulses, hybrid seeds and the proposed Makhana Board—found no reflection in budgetary allocations. On farmer support, the organisation said there were no significant relief measures, highlighting cuts in fertiliser subsidy from 1.86 lakh crore rupees to 1.70 lakh crore rupees and a reduction in food subsidy compared to last year’s revised figures.

Rural employment, according to AIKS, received scant attention. The budget speech made no mention of MGNREGS or the recently introduced VB-GRamG scheme. Although VB-GRamG has been allocated 95,692 crore rupees, the scheme requires 40 per cent funding from states. AIKS calculated that the Centre’s share of about 57,415 crore rupees is substantially lower than the 88,000 crore rupees allocated to MGNREGS in 2025-26, effectively shifting an additional burden of over 38,000 crore rupees onto state governments.

Citing the Economic Review 2025-26, AIKS warned that with fewer states now running budget surpluses and the Centre limiting the states’ share of the divisible pool to 41 per cent, many states will struggle to finance rural employment schemes. This, it said, could result in fewer workdays for rural households and undermine federal principles.

The only notable announcement related to rural employment was the Mahatma Gandhi Gram Swaraj Yojana aimed at promoting village industries, but AIKS said it was not backed by meaningful financial support. In agriculture and allied sectors, the group acknowledged an increase in allocations for animal husbandry and dairying, but criticised the focus on credit-driven expansion, private-sector breeding and foreign investment.

Calling the budget “anti-farmer, anti-worker and anti-federal,” AIKS has urged farmers and rural workers to protest by burning copies of the budget in villages and tehsils on February 3 or subsequent days. The organisation has also appealed for broad participation in the general strike scheduled for February 12 to register opposition to the Union Budget 2026-27.