LPU Chancellor Dr. Ashok Kumar Mittal Bans American Soft Drinks on Campus, Launches “Swadeshi 2.0” Movement Amid US Tariff Row

In a bold response to the announcement of a 50% tariff on Indian products by the U.S., Dr. Ashok Kumar Mittal, the Chancellor of LPU and a member of the Rajya Sabha, banned American soft drinks, including Coca-Cola, in the LPU campus, a big private university of 40,000 students. This action marks the initiation of Swadeshi 2.0 movement. It aims at protecting the economic independence of India and criticizing the U.S. government on its hypocrisy and bullying.

At the Constitution Club of Delhi, on Ganesh Chaturthi, Dr Mittal said that LPU was sending a very strong message of swadeshi moment. He compared this boycott to the 1905 Swadeshi movement that reduced British imports as India sought its independence.  

Mittal stated, “If our forefathers could challenge colonial powers with the Swadeshi movement, we too can resist modern economic pressures. India will not be cowed down,” invoking our leaders like Bipin Chandra Pal, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Lala Lajpat Rai, and Aurobindo Ghosh who ignited the original Swadeshi spirit. 

At LPU, the ban is already established. It is finding wide support in India, says Mittal. He blames the U.S. over the way it attacked India yet they continued to trade with Russia. He cautions that a national Swadeshi 2.0 would be damaging to the U.S. economy.

Although the U.S. is the largest export partner of India (87.4 billion dollars in 2024), the economy of India is robust and dominated by internal consumption- nearly 60 percent of GDP to domestic expenditure. Economists reckon the U.S. tariffs would reduce the GDP of India by 0.20% to 0.90%. To counter this, the government intends to do a series of reforms such as GST adjustments and growth enhancing policies.

India and the United States have been experiencing increasing tensions in their trade, and the boycott at LPU demonstrates a tendency toward economic self-sufficiency and just trade. The demand of Swadeshi 2.0 by Mittal is more of a broader demand of India to enjoy greater freedom in global trade with a rising degree of protectionism.