Punjab cooperative sugar mills have paid dues to farmers but two private mills have not
In a bid to provide much-needed relief to Punjab's sugarcane farmers, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann today announced to increase the price of sugarcane to Rs 380 from Rs 360 per quintal.
Announcing this in the assembly, Mr Mann said farmers will get an additional Rs 20 per quintal under the State Agreed Price, or SAP, of sugarcane compared to last year.
With this decision, the state government will spend an additional Rs 200 crore annually for the benefit of famers.
Mr Mann said farmers in Punjab eagerly want to adopt sugarcane crop under crop diversification, but they are worried about inadequate pricing and untimely payment.
At present, sugarcane is cultivated on just 1.25 lakh hectares in Punjab, while the total crushing capacity of sugar mills is 2.50 lakh hectares. This is why the state government has decided to enhance the price to supplement the income of farmers, Mr Mann said.
On the status of payments, the Chief Minister said cooperative sugar mills have paid all dues to farmers but two private mills have not paid their dues.
Mr Mann said the private mills' owners have left the country and the state government has started the process to confiscate their assets. The proceeds will be used to pay farmers.