The ‘left-behind’ India: Global trade deals can have disruptive political consequences

India is accelerating its embrace of global trade. After a decade without major trade agreements, the country signed pacts with the European Union, the United Kingdom, and New Zealand in twenty twenty-five and twenty twenty-six, and is continuing negotiations with the United States and other partners. Scroll.in reports that India's three decades of globalisation have created genuine economic opportunity—yet the benefits have concentrated geographically. Since the country's nineteen ninety-one liberalisation, it's become a major exporter of textiles, apparel, and information technology services. But those gains clustered in particular regions and sectors, leaving many areas economically marginalized despite exposure to global markets. These new trade deals will likely deepen that pattern, potentially creating political friction in India's left-behind regions.

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