MUMBAI, MAY 5:
The Maharashtra State Cooperative Sugar Factories Federation (MSCSFF) expects sugar cane production in the State to fall 40 per cent to 500-550 lakh tonnes in the sugar season 2016-17 (October-September), against 930 lakh tonnes in the same period last year.
According to initial reports, Shivajirao Nagawade, Chairman of MSCSFF, said the area under sugarcane cultivation would fall to 6.30 lakh hectares this year as against 9.27 lakh hectares in the same period last year.
The federation expects acreage under sugarcane in all the growing regions of Maharashtra, including Kolhapur, Pune, Ahmednagar, Aurangabad, Amravati and Nagpur, to fall drastically. Maharashtra is the largest producer of sugar and sugarcane in the country. “Even if the monsoon turns out to be good as widely predicted, the yield may suffer due to drought over the last two years. Except for few sugar mills, almost all the have stopped crushing in Maharashtra,” he said.
Nagawade expects cane output in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh to dip as well, while it may turn out to be little better in Uttar Pradesh.
Soft loans
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured all help to farmers to overcome the crisis. The State government is considering a proposal to extend soft loans to sugar factories in the worst drought-hit regions of Marathwada, Solapur and Ahmednagar.
Nagawade has suggested that the government restructure loans of sugar mills, as it is being for large corporate houses and provide subsidy for drip irrigation for cane. Asked whether the retail sugar prices would rise above the current level of Rs.40 a kg, he said prices may at most touch Rs.43-45 levels as the government will resort to imports and increase supplies if prices shoot up to unrealistic levels.
“Though sugar prices are rising at the retail level, farmers are not getting any benefit. The cost of cutting sugar cane has gone up to Rs.240 a tonne from Rs.70 a tonne a few years back. Use of harvesters is of no help as they charge about Rs.300-320 a tonne,” he said.
The Maharashtra government has asked all the 300 private and co-operative sugar factories in the State to donate Rs.10 lakh each to the Chief Minister’s drought relief fund for use in drought-hit Marathwada region.
The State government has issued seizure notices to 20 sugar factories for non-payment of Fair and Remunerative Price to cane farmers. It has set May 31 as deadline for paying the dues.
As of January, cane arrears to be paid by mills to farmers have declined to Rs.2,700 crore from Rs.21,000 crore in April 2015 as the State government extended interest free loan of Rs.6,600 crore to settle farmers’ dues.