Left unions to strike against labour codes on February 12

The Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU), All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) and All India Agricultural Workers Union (AIAWU) on Friday announced a general strike on February 12 against the new labour codes, budgetary provisions and Indo-US trade deals.

Addressing a joint press conference, union leaders said that there are grave concerns over the series of anti-people legislations and policy measures pushed by the Union Government.

“The Central Government has notified four labour codes, which will effectively snatch away the rights to association, strike and collective bargaining of the majority of Indian workers. The replacement of MGNREGA with the Viksit Bharat — Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025, dismantles a rights-based employment guarantee, shifts fiscal responsibility to the states, bans work during harvest seasons to ensure cheap labour, and deepens rural distress,” said the union leaders Elamaram Kareem (CITU), Vijoo Krishnan (AIKS), and B Venkat (AIAWU) in a joint statement.

“The decision to allow 100 per cent FDI in the insurance sector, the proposed Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, the Draft Seed Bill, and the Draft Electricity (Amendment) Bill, 2025, together represent a direct attack on agriculture, education, electricity consumers, and public sector institutions. The SHANTI Act opens the highly hazardous nuclear power sector to private and foreign profiteers while absolving suppliers of liability in case of accidents, posing a serious threat to nuclear safety and national sovereignty,” said the joint statement.

“The opening of agriculture to the United States may prove to be the deadliest attack on the peasantry of our country. The India-US trade deal is also an attack on national sovereignty and security,” said the union leaders.