However, the per hectare production of sugar in UP is the lowest among the major cane-producing states.
The state government has raised the SAP to Rs 165-170 this year. And following the agitation by the farmers, the UP chief minister Mayawati has also announced an additional Rs 15 per quintal as a bonus. However, farmers are not going to agree upon anything below Rs 280 per quintal. Meanwhile, the national spokesperson of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), Rakesh Tikait, says, “When sugar was being sold at Rs 20 per kg, we were getting Rs 140 per quintal for the cane. Now it is selling at Rs 40 per kg, the logical and proportional price for us is Rs 280. We are not happy with the price announced by the owners. Given that Uttrakhand government has announced the price band at Rs 220, it will not be economically viable to settle at anything below that.”
Fed up with the government’s apathy, farmers are shifting to the other crops. In fact, in the last two years, the sown area for sugarcane in UP has decreased by 20 per cent whereas the corresponding figure in Punjab-Haryana agricultural belt is about 40 per cent. Naturally, it is not a good omen for the world’s largest producer of sugar. In the year 2007-2008, the country produced 264 lakh metric tons of sugar. The figure has gone down to 150 lakh metric tons this year; whereas the actual demand in domestic market is 220 lakh metric tons. If the apathy continues, the production will go further down.
The situation is rather deteriorating fast. Aggrieved farmers are burning canes in the fields themselves. This year, out of 99-odd sugar mills in the state, only about a dozen mills have started operations. Mill owners also hackle on fixed prices. Not only that, they also don’t pay on time. In UP alone, several mills still have to dispense payments worth crores. On the other hand, these mill owners earn huge margins on the finished goods. The balance sheets of these firms and their performance at various stock exchanges prove this.
Actually it is not only sugar that brings them the profit but other by-products as well. National convener of Rashtriya Kisan Majdoor Sangathan V. M. Singh says, “Mill owners make a fortune by exploiting poor farmers. There are other sources of income as well. In fact, sugar forms merely 50-60 per cent of the total profit. Other products and carbon credits also bring in cash.”
However, this current agitation has rattled the otherwise stubborn mill owners as well. Samir S. Somaya, president of Indian Sugar Mills Association, says, “Farmers should get the right price for the cane. But any price should be settled upon only when both sides agree on it.” CM Mayawati too is wary of the farmer’s mood. She has asked her officials to carve out a plan for the ongoing crisis by involving the farmers. Normally, cane crushing begins by October 1 every year, but this time it is already late due to the problem. Both farmers and mill owners are suffering losses. Late crop will ensure less sugar production per quintal of cane, which means lesser price for the farmers. Mill owners will also get less for that kind of sugar.
The state government has raised the SAP to Rs 165-170 this year. And following the agitation by the farmers, the UP chief minister Mayawati has also announced an additional Rs 15 per quintal as a bonus. However, farmers are not going to agree upon anything below Rs 280 per quintal. Meanwhile, the national spokesperson of Bhartiya Kisan Union (BKU), Rakesh Tikait, says, “When sugar was being sold at Rs 20 per kg, we were getting Rs 140 per quintal for the cane. Now it is selling at Rs 40 per kg, the logical and proportional price for us is Rs 280. We are not happy with the price announced by the owners. Given that Uttrakhand government has announced the price band at Rs 220, it will not be economically viable to settle at anything below that.”
Fed up with the government’s apathy, farmers are shifting to the other crops. In fact, in the last two years, the sown area for sugarcane in UP has decreased by 20 per cent whereas the corresponding figure in Punjab-Haryana agricultural belt is about 40 per cent. Naturally, it is not a good omen for the world’s largest producer of sugar. In the year 2007-2008, the country produced 264 lakh metric tons of sugar. The figure has gone down to 150 lakh metric tons this year; whereas the actual demand in domestic market is 220 lakh metric tons. If the apathy continues, the production will go further down.
The situation is rather deteriorating fast. Aggrieved farmers are burning canes in the fields themselves. This year, out of 99-odd sugar mills in the state, only about a dozen mills have started operations. Mill owners also hackle on fixed prices. Not only that, they also don’t pay on time. In UP alone, several mills still have to dispense payments worth crores. On the other hand, these mill owners earn huge margins on the finished goods. The balance sheets of these firms and their performance at various stock exchanges prove this.
Actually it is not only sugar that brings them the profit but other by-products as well. National convener of Rashtriya Kisan Majdoor Sangathan V. M. Singh says, “Mill owners make a fortune by exploiting poor farmers. There are other sources of income as well. In fact, sugar forms merely 50-60 per cent of the total profit. Other products and carbon credits also bring in cash.”
However, this current agitation has rattled the otherwise stubborn mill owners as well. Samir S. Somaya, president of Indian Sugar Mills Association, says, “Farmers should get the right price for the cane. But any price should be settled upon only when both sides agree on it.” CM Mayawati too is wary of the farmer’s mood. She has asked her officials to carve out a plan for the ongoing crisis by involving the farmers. Normally, cane crushing begins by October 1 every year, but this time it is already late due to the problem. Both farmers and mill owners are suffering losses. Late crop will ensure less sugar production per quintal of cane, which means lesser price for the farmers. Mill owners will also get less for that kind of sugar.
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