Saurabh Mukherjee
A nationwide general strike called by a joint platform of central trade unions and farmer organisations witnessed widespread participation across several states on Thursday (February 12), with organisers claiming massive turnout and significant disruption in key sectors.
The strike was convened around an 11-point charter of demands, including the repeal of the four labour codes, opposition to privatisation and resistance to trade agreements such as the proposed India-US deal.
Workers from both organised and unorganised sectors joined the strike, alongside farmers and agricultural labourers.
The United Kisan Morcha, a joint platform of farmer bodies, actively participated and raised objections to the India-US trade agreement. According to the organisers, the mobilisation brought together industrial workers, rural labourers, bank and insurance employees, coal miners and transport workers in coordinated protests across the country.
The CPI(M) Polit Bureau described the mobilisation as a major success. In a statement, the CPI(M) congratulated the working class.
“Peasants and agricultural workers joined the working class in protesting against the notification of the four labour codes, the virtual repeal of the rights based Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, along with other anti-worker, anti-farmer, and anti-people policies of the BJP-led Union government. The working class made its voice heard loud and clear. The CPI(M) reiterates its solidarity with the workers, farmers, and agricultural workers who are protesting the various anti-people policies of the BJP government,” the party said.
"The government should immediately rescind the notification of the four labour codes and ensure that the hard-won rights of workers are protected. It should rescind the VB-GRAMG legislation, call back the proposal for privatisation of electricity distribution and withdraw the seed bill as well. It should also withdraw from the various Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and trade deals it has signed, particularly with the US and Europe, as they are detrimental to the interests of Indian workers, farmers and people in general," the statement added.
CITU General Secretary Elamaram Karim said that at more than 2000 places, thousands of workers, farmers, agricultural and rural workers participated in huge rallies. This marks the strike as one of the biggest strikes in India.
“In more than 2,000 places, thousands of workers, farmers, and agricultural and rural workers participated in massive mobilisations, marking this as one of the largest strikes in India. The mood of the people clearly expresses their determination for a do-or-die battle against the imposition of Labour Codes and other anti-worker policies. The huge mobilisation of farmers was also intensified due to the shameful India-US deal – the people of India will make imperialist forces retreat with courage and strength,” he wrote.
In Jharkhand, trade union members staged demonstrations at the gates of coal companies and public sector undertakings. Umesh Das, state joint general secretary of the Bank of India Employees Union, said the strike had a positive impact on the banking, insurance and coal sectors.
Telangana witnessed disruptions in several industries, including the Singareni coal mining belt. Protest actions were also reported from Odisha, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.
Maharashtra saw protests in different districts without any reported untoward incidents, according to officials quoted by PTI.
D L Karad, state president of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, said demonstrations were organised demanding withdrawal of the four labour codes and raising issues such as privatisation, vacancies in government departments, contractualisation and a minimum wage of Rs 30,000.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sachin Ahir said his party supported the strike call, while CPI(M) MLA Vinod Nikole reported protests in areas of his Dahanu constituency in Palghar district.
CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya criticised the Centre’s policy decisions.
“From the streets to Parliament campus, workers and farmers, women and men, India today sent out a loud message of protest against the four Labour Codes of slavery, the denial of rural employment guarantee and mortgaging of Indian agriculture to the US farm lobby,” he wrote on X.
Apple growers in Himachal Pradesh joined the action, with the Himachal Apple Growers Association extending support along with CITU and the Himachal Kisan Sabha. Protests were organised across major apple-growing districts at block and district levels.
Odisha witnessed significant disruption, with public transport suspended in several areas and shops and educational institutions closed in many towns. Protesters barricaded roads and blocked railway tracks in parts of the state. The impact was visible in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Balasore, Berhampur and Sambalpur.
In Chhattisgarh, state-run banks, insurance offices and post offices were affected as employees joined the strike. Mining operations were also disrupted.
In Tamil Nadu, port operations, particularly at Thoothukudi and Chennai, were hit, and workers held gate meetings in industrial hubs such as Sriperumbudur. Rail blockades were reported in multiple locations. Government bus services between Tamil Nadu and Kerala were suspended, affecting inter-state travel. In Kanyakumari district, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses did not operate from Vadasery Bus Stand, while Tamil Nadu buses ran only up to the Kaliakkavilai border.
Kerala reported low attendance in offices due to limited transport, with many shops and establishments remaining closed during the 24-hour strike.
In Madhya Pradesh, while markets and educational institutions remained open, protests were held in some districts. More than 25,000 civilian employees in defence establishments reported to work an hour late as a mark of protest.
“We could not observe a complete daylong strike as defence production and related work fall under the essential services category,” said S N Pathak, president of the All-India Defence Employees Federation.
In Assam, protesters stopped commercial vehicles in parts of Guwahati, and employees of the state power department staged demonstrations at workplaces. Contract workers and mineral oil workers also joined the strike.
In Karnataka, police detained workers and trade union leaders during a rally at Freedom Park in Bengaluru. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge expressed support for the strike, even as trade union leaders had earlier urged the Congress government in the state not to introduce the labour codes.
Trade unions including CITU, AITUC, INTUC, HMS, UTUC, AIUTUC, SEWA and AICCTU participated in the strike. The leadership of the joint platform of trade unions claimed that around 30 crore workers and employees across the country took part in the nationwide action.
The strike was convened around an 11-point charter of demands, including the repeal of the four labour codes, opposition to privatisation and resistance to trade agreements such as the proposed India-US deal.
Workers from both organised and unorganised sectors joined the strike, alongside farmers and agricultural labourers.
The United Kisan Morcha, a joint platform of farmer bodies, actively participated and raised objections to the India-US trade agreement. According to the organisers, the mobilisation brought together industrial workers, rural labourers, bank and insurance employees, coal miners and transport workers in coordinated protests across the country.
The CPI(M) Polit Bureau described the mobilisation as a major success. In a statement, the CPI(M) congratulated the working class.
“Peasants and agricultural workers joined the working class in protesting against the notification of the four labour codes, the virtual repeal of the rights based Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, along with other anti-worker, anti-farmer, and anti-people policies of the BJP-led Union government. The working class made its voice heard loud and clear. The CPI(M) reiterates its solidarity with the workers, farmers, and agricultural workers who are protesting the various anti-people policies of the BJP government,” the party said.
"The government should immediately rescind the notification of the four labour codes and ensure that the hard-won rights of workers are protected. It should rescind the VB-GRAMG legislation, call back the proposal for privatisation of electricity distribution and withdraw the seed bill as well. It should also withdraw from the various Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) and trade deals it has signed, particularly with the US and Europe, as they are detrimental to the interests of Indian workers, farmers and people in general," the statement added.
CPI(M) Polit Bureau Congratulates the Working Class on Successful General Strike pic.twitter.com/iNK1J9nkNG
— CPI (M) (@cpimspeak) February 12, 2026
CITU General Secretary Elamaram Karim said that at more than 2000 places, thousands of workers, farmers, agricultural and rural workers participated in huge rallies. This marks the strike as one of the biggest strikes in India.
“In more than 2,000 places, thousands of workers, farmers, and agricultural and rural workers participated in massive mobilisations, marking this as one of the largest strikes in India. The mood of the people clearly expresses their determination for a do-or-die battle against the imposition of Labour Codes and other anti-worker policies. The huge mobilisation of farmers was also intensified due to the shameful India-US deal – the people of India will make imperialist forces retreat with courage and strength,” he wrote.
In Jharkhand, trade union members staged demonstrations at the gates of coal companies and public sector undertakings. Umesh Das, state joint general secretary of the Bank of India Employees Union, said the strike had a positive impact on the banking, insurance and coal sectors.
Telangana witnessed disruptions in several industries, including the Singareni coal mining belt. Protest actions were also reported from Odisha, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.
Maharashtra saw protests in different districts without any reported untoward incidents, according to officials quoted by PTI.
D L Karad, state president of the Centre of Indian Trade Unions, said demonstrations were organised demanding withdrawal of the four labour codes and raising issues such as privatisation, vacancies in government departments, contractualisation and a minimum wage of Rs 30,000.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sachin Ahir said his party supported the strike call, while CPI(M) MLA Vinod Nikole reported protests in areas of his Dahanu constituency in Palghar district.
CPI(ML) general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya criticised the Centre’s policy decisions.
“From the streets to Parliament campus, workers and farmers, women and men, India today sent out a loud message of protest against the four Labour Codes of slavery, the denial of rural employment guarantee and mortgaging of Indian agriculture to the US farm lobby,” he wrote on X.
From the streets to Parliament campus, workers and farmers, women and men, India today sent out a loud message of protest against the four Labour Codes of slavery, the denial of rural employment guarantee and mortgaging of Indian agriculture to the US farm lobby. #AllIndiaStrike pic.twitter.com/SHqjaEGd8V
— Dipankar (@Dipankar_cpiml) February 12, 2026
Apple growers in Himachal Pradesh joined the action, with the Himachal Apple Growers Association extending support along with CITU and the Himachal Kisan Sabha. Protests were organised across major apple-growing districts at block and district levels.
Odisha witnessed significant disruption, with public transport suspended in several areas and shops and educational institutions closed in many towns. Protesters barricaded roads and blocked railway tracks in parts of the state. The impact was visible in Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Balasore, Berhampur and Sambalpur.
In Chhattisgarh, state-run banks, insurance offices and post offices were affected as employees joined the strike. Mining operations were also disrupted.
In Tamil Nadu, port operations, particularly at Thoothukudi and Chennai, were hit, and workers held gate meetings in industrial hubs such as Sriperumbudur. Rail blockades were reported in multiple locations. Government bus services between Tamil Nadu and Kerala were suspended, affecting inter-state travel. In Kanyakumari district, Kerala State Road Transport Corporation buses did not operate from Vadasery Bus Stand, while Tamil Nadu buses ran only up to the Kaliakkavilai border.
Kerala reported low attendance in offices due to limited transport, with many shops and establishments remaining closed during the 24-hour strike.
In Madhya Pradesh, while markets and educational institutions remained open, protests were held in some districts. More than 25,000 civilian employees in defence establishments reported to work an hour late as a mark of protest.
“We could not observe a complete daylong strike as defence production and related work fall under the essential services category,” said S N Pathak, president of the All-India Defence Employees Federation.
In Assam, protesters stopped commercial vehicles in parts of Guwahati, and employees of the state power department staged demonstrations at workplaces. Contract workers and mineral oil workers also joined the strike.
In Karnataka, police detained workers and trade union leaders during a rally at Freedom Park in Bengaluru. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge expressed support for the strike, even as trade union leaders had earlier urged the Congress government in the state not to introduce the labour codes.
Trade unions including CITU, AITUC, INTUC, HMS, UTUC, AIUTUC, SEWA and AICCTU participated in the strike. The leadership of the joint platform of trade unions claimed that around 30 crore workers and employees across the country took part in the nationwide action.
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