‘Sugarcane price is lower in Karnataka than in T.N., Kerala despite its higher rate of recovery’
D. Ravindran criticized the unfair sugarcane prices in Karnataka, where farmers receive less than those in Tamil Nadu and Kerala, despite producing better-quality cane. He demanded a fair price of ₹5,500 per tonne and a law ensuring farmers receive a share of profits from by-products. Ravindran also opposed amendments to the Sugarcane (Control) Order, calling them anti-farmer.
Terming the sugarcane price offered to cane growers in Karnataka as unfair price, the president of All India Sugarcane Farmers Federation D. Ravindran said that sugarcane growers in Karnataka got a lower price as compared to their counterparts in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Kerala despite having produced better quality sugarcane with higher sugar recovery rate. “Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) being paid to sugarcane growers in Karnataka is not fair in actual sense. It is an unfair price.
The sugar recovery rate of the cane grown in Tamil Nadu and Kerala is less than 8.5%. Yet, the cane growers in Tamil Nadu and Kerala get ₹2,750 and ₹2,870 per tonne of sugarcane. However, the cane growers in Karnataka get a lesser price than that paid in these two states despite having produced quality cane with a sugar recovery rate of over 10%. This is injustice being meted out to the cane growers in Karnataka. Surprisingly, the farmers in Karnataka are up in arms in big movements to fight the injustice and demand for State Advised Price (SAP),” Mr. Ravindran said.
He was addressing farmers’ gathering after inaugurating the Sugarcane Growers’ State Conference in Kalaburagi on Sunday (September 29, 2024). “As many as 74 sugar mills are functioning in Karnataka. Except for 13 factories that functioned under the cooperative principle, the rest are owned by private companies. The privately owned sugar mills cheat cane growers at multiple levels. They don’t pay fair prices to the cane growers. As per an estimate, farmers spend between ₹2,700 and ₹2,900 to grow each tonne of cane. They must get united and fight for a fair price instead of helplessly incurring losses,” he said. Referring to the SAP Act in force in States like Punjab and Haryana, Mr. Ravindran demanded the Karnataka government introduce similar Act in the State to safeguard the interests of its cane growers.
“A fair price of ₹5,500 per tonne should be fixed for cane having more than 9.5% sugar recovery rate. The government should introduce an Act to ensure that 50% of the profit earned from by-products of sugarcane would be paid to cane growers,” Mr. Ravindran said. Opposing the proposed amendment to Sugarcane (Control) Order of 1966, Mr. Ravindran alleged that the Union Government was attempting to make the amendment by keeping the sugarcane growers in the dark. “If the Order in question is amended, the States will lose the freedom of selling sugar and its by-products without the permission of the Union Government. The amended Order will put an end to the rule that mandates the sugar mills to pay farmers within 14 days of sugar harvest. We should not allow the Union Government to make the anti-farmer amendment,” Mr. Ravindran said. T. Yeshwanth, State Secretary of the Sugarcane Growers Association, alleged that the State government had always been interested in protecting the interests of the sugar mill owners sacrificing the farmers’ interests.
“The government had issued an order mandating sugar mills with ethanol production facilities to pay an additional amount of ₹150 per tonne of cane to farmers. However, the order was hardly implemented owing to the government’s inclination towards sugar mills,” Mr. Yeshwanth said. Fammers’ leader Sharanabasappa Mamshetty, trade union leader M.B. Sajjan, Anganwadi workers’ leader Gouramma Patil, Dalit activist Sudham Dhanni and others were present.
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