Mumbai, Oct. 3:
After demanding substantial hike in sugarcane prices for the last four years, farmers in the sugar belt of Maharashtra are now demanding a hike in ethanol prices.
They have decided to launch a State-wide agitation from Sunday.
Farmer groups believe that production and trade of ethanol is highly regulated by Maharashtra Government.
They want it to be unshackled and demand allowing production from even non-sugarcane sources.
The minimum base price of ethanol should be hiked to Rs 60 a litre from Rs 40.
Leader of Shetkari Sanghatana, Raghunath Patil told Business Line that about one lakh farmers are expected to launch the agitation from Satara district.
If the demands of the farmers are not met, then the movement of fuel tankers from petrol pumps to the depots would be stopped,
“We will force the Government to pay a higher price tosugar mills,” he said.
He alleged that blending of ethanol with petrol sources is not being taken up in a big way by oil marketing companies due to vested interests.
The State Government and some cooperative sugar mills are also not very responsive to the demand.
He said inflation has substantially pushed up the prices of farm inputs and sugarcane farming is getting unviable.
“Ethanol blending with petrol can save precious foreign exchange and strengthen the rupee but there are people who don’t want this to happen. Rather than making liquor for people’s consumption, vehicles should run on it,” he said.
He said that ethanol can also be derived from sources such as maize and sweet sorghum and used for fuel blending.
Cooperation Secretary of Maharashtra Government Rajgopal Deora told Business Line that for some ‘unknown’ reasons, oil marketing companies are not taking up petrol blending on a large scale.
The companies undertake a price discovery exercise every year through tenders.
Instead they should link ethanol prices to global market prices, which will increase ethanol blending, he said.