Raju Shetti seeks Rs 5,000 per tonne initial cane payment, threatens to halt mill operations
Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana president Raju Shetti demanded an initial sugarcane payment of ₹5,000 per tonne, warning mills against starting crushing without it. He also sought drought compensation, additional cane payments, loan relief and ethanol project support, threatening a highway blockade from October 13 if talks fail.
Kolhapur: Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana (SSS) president and former MP Raju Shetti has demanded an initial sugarcane payment of Rs 5,000 per tonne for the upcoming crushing season, warning that farmers will stop sugar mills from commencing operations if the demand is not accepted.
Speaking at the organisation’s 25th sugarcane conference in Kolhapur on Saturday, Shetti said rising cultivation expenses and severe drought conditions had significantly aggravated the financial stress faced by sugarcane growers. He maintained that mills must announce the proposed advance payment before beginning crushing operations.
Shetti also warned of an indefinite blockade of national highway traffic at the Kognoli toll plaza on the Maharashtra-Karnataka border from October 13 if the October 12 meeting scheduled by the central government fails to produce a favourable decision.
Seeking additional financial assistance for growers, he called on the central and Maharashtra governments to provide a subsidy of Rs 500 per tonne to compensate farmers for harvesting delays and sugar recovery losses during transportation.
He further proposed an additional payment of Rs 300 per tonne for sugarcane harvested after December 15, over and above the existing rate.
Highlighting the impact of inadequate rainfall, Shetti sought direct drought compensation of Rs 1 lakh per hectare for farmers affected by crop losses. He said the financial distress extended beyond agriculture, affecting livestock owners as well, and called for assistance to reach beneficiaries directly through their bank accounts.
On farm credit, the SSS leader urged the government to double the incentive for farmers who regularly repay their loans under the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Loan Waiver Scheme, increasing it from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1 lakh.
Raising concerns over the functioning of sugar mills, Shetti alleged irregularities in cane weighing, sugar recovery assessments and stock transactions. He called for the digitisation of weighing systems at all sugar factories and their integration with an online monitoring platform to improve transparency and accountability.
He also expressed concern over declining ethanol production, warning that lower output could leave sugar mills struggling to service interest payments and instalments on loans taken for ethanol projects. Such financial pressure on factories could eventually affect their ability to make timely payments to sugarcane growers.
To address the issue, he proposed a full-year interest subsidy on ethanol project loans and an extension of their repayment schedules.
Emphasising the industry’s wider economic significance, Shetti said nearly five crore sugarcane farmers and 1.5 lakh workers and agricultural labourers depended on the sector for their livelihoods. He called for a dedicated financial stability policy to protect the interests of stakeholders and strengthen the sugar industry.
He also urged the government to facilitate loans for private and cooperative sugar factories at a concessional annual interest rate of 4 percent. Such financing, he suggested, could be channelled through NABARD, the Sugar Development Fund or the National Cooperative Development Corporation.
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Source : ChiniMandi
