Date:12/01/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/01/12/stories/2008011255320500.htm

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Karnataka - Bangalore

Sugarcane growers want better deal

Special Correspondent

3,000 farmer activists take out rally before holding a meeting in Bangalore

Support price of Rs. 1,200 a tonne sought
A memorandum of 16 demands presented

— Photo: K. Murali Kumar

IN SUPPORT OF DEMANDS: Sugarcane farmers, led by KRRS, taking out a rally in Bangalore on Friday.

BANGALORE: The Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha (KRRS) and various other pro-farmer organisations in the State have demanded immediate mitigation of problems of sugarcane growers.

The charter of demands presented to Governor Rameshwar Thakur sought a support price of Rs. 1,200 per tonne of sugarcane for the crushing season 2008-09.

About 3,000 farmer activists representing over 12 organisations held a rally and a meeting in Bangalore on Friday.

They blocked the Palace Road stretch between Maharani College and Basaveshwara Circle where they held a meeting.

Some of the leaders later presented the memorandum to the Governor containing 16 demands.

Since a large number of farmer organisations had come together to hold this rally and meeting, various issues pertaining to farming in general, featured in the memorandum.

KRRS president K.S. Puttannaiah said that the State should have a uniform policy for sugarcane procurement and support price in all growing areas and crushing points. At present, the price ranged between Rs. 845 and Rs. 934 a tonne and some crushers were creating problems for the growers by not making payments for a long time.

He said that on more than three occasions the growers had represented to all the three political parties that had ruled the State in the last 40 months but there was no action from the coalition Governments. Delegation of growers also met the Governor in December 2007 seeking his intervention in stabilising the procurement price for sugarcane, he added.

The Government should give Rs. 25,000 per acre of sugarcane which could not be harvested due to unavailability of crushing facility.

The charter of demands stated that the Government should take the initiative to start the second unit of the Mysugar Factory and also start crushing facilities in Belgaum and other cane growing districts expeditiously.

The growers have urged the Governor to make it compulsory for all sugar factories in both the private and cooperative sectors to have their own ethanol production unit, captive power plant, distillery and production centres for bio-fertilizer.

All payments due to the farmers should be cleared within a fortnight, the memorandum appealed.