NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 30:  

Ahead of two sugar producers’ bodies organising a ‘Marathon Walk’ here on October 2 to highlight the “pitiable condition” of five crore cane farmers, the Indian Sugar Mills Association (ISMA) and the National Federation of Cooperative Sugar Factories (NFCSF) said they were not in support of ‘negative campaigns’ against the Centre.

Welcoming the government’s steps to resolve the industry’s problems, a statement released on Wednesday said: “ISMA and NFCSF are working shoulder to shoulder with the government in solving the current crisis of the sugar industry and is not supporting any negative campaigns against the government.”

The note follows two separate bodies — the All India Sugarcane Producers Organisation and the All India Sugar Producers Organisation — appealing to the Centre this week to take steps to mitigate the plight of farmers and the industry and announcing a ‘Marathon Walk’ on Gandhi Jayanti. Mills across India, mainly in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, owe cane farmers close to ₹12,000 crore as dues.