The new cane crushing season is slated to begin in Maharashtra from November 1. With the start of the new season, cane growers in Maharashtra have stepped up their demand for a higher price, citing increase in cultivation costs.
Maharashtra mills had paid a first advance of Rs 2,100 a tonne to Rs 2,500 a tonne last year, excluding harvesting and transport costs.
This year, the state government has refused to take any stand on cane price stating that mills will have to pay according to the fair and remunerative price (FRP) declared by the Centre. Farmer organisations however, have stepped up their demand for a higher cane price threatening that they will not allow factories to begin production.
The Sharad Joshi-led Shetkari Sangatana has demanded a first installment of Rs 3,200 a tonne and Raghunathdada Patil led Shetkari Sanghatana demanded a cane price of Rs 3,500 a tonne as the first installment.
Around 170 sugar mills in the state are expected to crush around 640 lakh MT tonne of cane for the 2013-14 season and production is expected to touch 73.5 lakh MT, Vijay Singhal, sugar commissioner, Maharashtra said.
Singhal made it clear that the government would not intervene in the cane price issue this year in accordance with the earlier decision taken by the chief minister.
He said farmer organisations were free to make demands for a higher cane price and it was entirely up to the sugar mills to decide depending on their financial viability.
Last year, the agitation by cane farmers across Maharashtra had turned violent with farmers blocking state highways, refusing to let cane pass to the sugar factories.
Kolhapur MP Raju Shetty, who heads the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana, was arrested and sent to the Pune jail after he refused bail.
Sharad Joshi's Shetkari Sanghatana said a delegation had met additional commissioner of sugar in Pune on Monday with their demand for a higher cane price. Raghunathdada Patil, who addressed a rally in Satara on Sunday, said his organisation demanded a hike in cane price to Rs 3,500 a tonne, sought permission to make ethanol from cane also demanded a higher price for ethanol in addition to seeking a 60-80% hike in import duty on sugar.
Farmer organisations have also taken up the issue of demand notices being issued to mills by the I-T department. Vitthal Pawar, general secretary, Shetkari Sanghatana led by Sharad Joshi and chief coordinator, Shetkari Sakhar Karkhane Andolan, Maharashtra, said they had met chief commissioner of I-T, Pune asking him to intervene on the issue.
The commissioner agreed that no coercive action would be taken against the mills,” Pawar said.
Sanjiv Babar, MD, Maharashtra State Cooperative Factories Federation ( MSCFF), said a separate delegation met the commissioner of I-T, Pune on Monday. The commissioner sought a specific proposal from the mills seeking information on the taxes that were paid to the mills and the amount of taxes which were due to the department, he said.
The I-T department has begun slapping notices to sugar mills for periods ranging from 2007-08 to 2011-12 last month onwards.
Social activists Medha Patkar and Anna Hazare have come together to hold protests on October 9 to save cooperative sugar factories in Maharashtra from falling into the hands of politicians.
The protests come in the wake of a state government decision last month barring private parties from buying sick sugar co-operatives through public auctions.