Buoyed over increase in area under sugarcane in Haryana, the co-operative sugar mills this year are aiming to produce about 24 lakh quintals of sugar at an expected overall recovery of 9.6 per cent.
Haryana has 10 sugar mills in the co-operative sector with the crushing season generally extending from December till May.
Officials in the state co-operative mills maintained, till date, 86,15,000 quintals sugarcane has been crushed to produce 6,12,000 quintals of sugar as against 3,24,000 quintals sugar produced by crushing 42,04,000 quintals sugarcane in the same month last year. Last year, the 10 mills had crushed 88,56,000 quintals sugarcane to produce 7,52,000 quintals of sugar (8.5 per cent recovery).
The quantum jump in sugar production targeted this year in Haryana is attributed to many factors. The area under sugarcane has registered increase following combative measures taken by the government as well as private sugar mills.
The sugarcane area in Haryana has already touched 100,000 hectare for the sowing season 2009-10 and crushing season 2010-11, compared to 74,000 hectare area in the corresponding period last year.
Similarly, the government officials maintained under the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana, subsidy amounting to Rs 4 crore was offered to farmers opting for sugarcane crop. Further, to encourage farmers to move in for sugarcane cultivation, the state has also announced higher state advised price (SAP).
Haryana CM Bhupinder Singh Hooda last year had announced the revised SAP to the sugarcane farmers .
The new SAP for the early variety of sugarcane would be Rs 220 per quintal, whereas for middle and late varieties, it would be Rs 215 and Rs 210 per quintal, respectively. The cane price during last crushing season was Rs 210 per quintal for early variety, Rs 205 and Rs 200 per quintal for middle and general variety, respectively.
