U’khand to declare sugarcane price on 23 Jan: Minister
Dehradun, 19 Jan: The state government on Friday said it would declare the state advised price (SAP) for sugarcane for the season 2023-24 at the next cabinet meeting on 23 January.
“The state cabinet will decide the SAP for sugarcane at its next meeting on 23 January,” announced Sugarcane Minister Saurabh Bahuguna.
Two days ago, Uttar Pradesh raised its cane price for all varieties by Rs 20. The rate for the early variety will be Rs 370 per quintal.
Pressure has been mounting on the state government to declare its price. But Bahuguna said the government would declare the cane price at the next cabinet meeting, now, as there was some problem when the issue came up during the last cabinet meeting.
Bahuguna, however, asserted that all dues of sugarcane farmers have been settled by the government. The government has released Rs 470 crore to settle the dues of farmers for the season 2022-23.
In the past, the government had been setting up committees every year to declare the SAP but never followed their direction in the true sense. Instead, the government has evolved a simple formula of giving Rs 2-5 more than what is given in Uttar Pradesh.
However, it was not yet known whether the government would also make any commitment about bonus for farmers as had been done in the past. “Our sugar mills are already facing losses. We cannot increase the SAP further which will prove the death-knell for the mills where farmers sell their produce,” said a top government official.
Resentment has been growing among farmers against non-declaration of SAP during the past 1-2 months. Farmers are demanding SAP of around Rs 400-450. Former Chief Minister Harish Rawat has also called for declaring sugarcane price at Rs 425 per quintal.
Source Link: https://garhwalpost.in/ukhand-to-declare-sugarcane-price-on-23-jan-minister/
