Maharashtra: Raju Shetti leads 185-km bike rally, seeks Rs 4,500 per tonne as first sugarcane payment
Raju Shetti led a 185-km motorcycle rally across five Kolhapur talukas, demanding higher sugarcane prices in Maharashtra. The Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana seeks an initial payment of ₹4,500 per tonne plus ₹500 later. Shetti issued a four-day deadline for mills and authorities to agree, threatening intensified agitation.
Kolhapur: The demand for higher sugarcane prices in Maharashtra gained momentum on Sunday, with Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana president and former MP Raju Shetti leading a 185-km motorcycle rally through five talukas of Kolhapur district to press sugar mills for better remuneration to growers.
The organisation is seeking an initial cane payment of Rs 4,500 per tonne, with mills committing to pay a further Rs 500 per tonne. Shetti has argued that the prevailing sugar market conditions, including higher prices and tight supplies, provide scope for mills to offer farmers a better price for their produce.
The rally commenced from Hatkanangale taluka in the morning and passed through several villages before reaching Kasba Sangaon in Kagal taluka, where it concluded with a public meeting in the evening. Hundreds of participants joined the mobilisation, with sugarcane growers turning out at various locations to welcome the rally and endorse the organisation’s demands.
A key message conveyed during the campaign was that farmers should not permit sugar mills to commence cane harvesting without first securing clarity on the procurement price. Shetti called on growers to insist on a public assurance from mill managements before allowing harvesting operations to proceed.
At the concluding meeting, Shetti gave sugar mills and the district administration a four-day deadline to arrive at a consensus and announce the payment terms for the coming season. He maintained that cane prices must adequately compensate farmers for the labour, cultivation expenses and other investments involved in growing the crop.
“Farmers’ sugarcane is not free. We will not allow sugar factories to commence operations until farmers receive a fair price for their produce. If factory owners and the administration fail to sit together and reach a satisfactory agreement within the next four days, the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana will intensify its agitation,” Raju Shetti told ChiniMandi.
The mobilisation also comes against the backdrop of concerns over competition from sugar mills in neighbouring Karnataka. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had recently warned that any delay in the start of crushing at Maharashtra’s border-area factories could give Karnataka mills an opportunity to procure sugarcane from growers in the state. Such a development, he cautioned, could affect cane availability for Maharashtra factories already grappling with financial pressures.
Shetti, however, sought to counter this concern, pointing to the participation of farmer representatives from Karnataka in Sunday’s rally. He said they had assured the organisation of their opposition to the start of crushing operations by mills in their state, indicating that the possibility of Karnataka factories drawing cane away from Maharashtra was unlikely.
With the crushing season approaching, the four-day deadline set by Shetti puts the focus on negotiations between sugar millers, farmer organisations and the state administration over the price payable to growers.
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Source : ChiniMandi
