MULTAN: Sugarcane growers are facing critical financial losses after one-month delay in starting the crushing season by the millers in a bid to procure sugarcane on desired prices instead of the government-fixed price of Rs180 per 40 kilogramme.
Lack of disposal of last years’ sugar stock lying with the mills is the other problem hindering the start of the crushing season but this grave situation makes the sugarcane growers penniless, the farmers said while talking to The News on Tuesday.
The growers are facing weight loss of their sugarcane due to delayed buying, they said.
Sugarcane growers in Bahawalpur, Rahimyar Khan, Bahawalnagar, Dera Ghazi Khan, Muzaffargarh, Layyah and Rajanpur are daily dispatching trolleys to respective sugar mills but the trolleys are returning with their load on.
The Sugarcane Act 1954 bound the sugar mills to start buying from November 15 but nearly a month has lapsed and the millers are reluctant to start buying. Majority of the sugar millers is sitting in the laps of government and they are not ready to start buying while the trolleys are parked outside the mills in south Punjab districts, said the growers.
The south Punjab Kisan Board has demanded the government to fix a minimum rate for 40-kg of sugarcane at Rs220 due to increase in per acre expenses and increased input prices. South Punjab KBP president Hafiz Hussain Ahmed from Dera Ghazi Khan said the government had fixed Rs180 per 40-kg sugarcane prices when fertilisers including DAP was available at Rs25 per bag, urea at Rs1,200 and diesel at Rs85 per litre. Now the input prices have shot up and DAP bag is available at Rs3,700, urea at Rs1,700 and diesel at Rs1,14 per litre. He said that each trolley of sugarcane carries 500-600 maund sugarcane but the millers exploit growers and bring a cut of 70 maunds on each trolley in the name of contaminants.
Progressive grower Khurshid Khan Kanju from Lodhran feared that delay in crushing season will delay the sowing of Rabi crops particularly wheat. He said the millers pay lower prices than the government-fixed prices.
Multan district Kisan committee president Malik M Iqbal from Larr said that the millers deduct at least Rs12600 on each trolley carrying. When growers refused to accept cut in the stock, the millers refuse to lift the sugarcane stock. The Punjab Agriculture Department officials have estimated sugarcane production to 65.69 million tons of which 44.86 million tons are produced in Punjab, 16.27 million tons in Sindh, 4.52 million tons in KP and 0.03 million tons in Balochistan. The sugarcane business causes circulation of Rs593 billion yearly subject to the sugarcane purchase at Rs180 per 40-kg from growers. Hafiz Hussain said that the millers deeply exploit growers and cause financial losses of more than 100 billion rupees yearly after buying sugarcane on low prices than the prescribed by the government.
Grower Kanju said that there was no mechanism of buying sugarcane exists in the province. He wondered as to why the government announced the support prices of crops when they were unable to implement it. He alleged that sugar mills were issuing permits to blue-eyed farmers.
He urged upon the government to constitute a committee which will discuss the issues of pricing, permit and deduction.
Senior member Sugar Mills Association M Khan Sadozai said that mills were facing critical crises of the cost of production and the situation cannot be improved until linking of the sugarcane purchase prices with the prevailing market rates.
He said that the purchase price of sugarcane and their production cost would increase to Rs63 per kg which would be a net loss of Rs15 per kg to the sugar mills as compared to the current sugar price in the local market of Rs50 per kilogramme.
