Farmers picket sugar directorate office demanding clearance of pending bills

Belagavi: Hundreds of farmers, led by the Karnataka Rajya Raita Sangh (KRRS) and Hasiru Sene, laid siege to the S Nijalingappa Sugar Institute in Belagavi on Friday, demanding immediate action against sugar factories with outstanding cane dues running into thousands of crores of rupees. The protesters raised slogans against factory managements and urged the sugar commissioner to intervene and ensure prompt payment. Farmers said the sugarcane price was fixed at Rs 3,300 per tonne, but of the 29 sugar factories in Belagavi district, only 2 cleared payments.The Sugar Institute's office premises in Belagavi became the site of a farmers' protest on Friday.According to officials of the Sugar Institute, 27 sugar factories in Belagavi district retained an outstanding amount of over Rs 1.5 thousand crore.Farmer leader Chunappa Pujari said the owners of factories intentionally retained the outstanding amount and demanded that the govt intervene and immediately clear the money; otherwise, a case should be registered against the owners. Farmers have dues from sugar factories owned by influential people. The farmers who supplied sugarcane should be paid within 14 days. This should be considered seriously, he said.A senior official of the Sugar Directorate said that this time, the crushing of sugarcane in the state increased by 50 lakh tonnes compared to last year. Out of the 81 sugar factories in the state, 63 sugar factories completed the season, and 18 sugar factories are still crushing sugarcane. Rs 4,700 crore is due from sugar factories. Show-cause notices were issued to factories that have outstanding sugarcane bills. When compared to last year, the sugarcane yield increased this time. Last time, 10.5 recovery was recorded; this time, there is 11.1 recovery. So, an additional Rs 180 per tonne has to be paid. The factories were also informed about this.He assured that the Sugar Directorate took several reform measures for the benefit of sugarcane growers. Statutory notices were issued to sugar factories, and farmers will be ensured timely payment of sugarcane bills.Police security was deployed outside the commissioner's office. The farmers warned that they would intensify their struggle if the bill was not received on time.