Has sugarcane finally turned bitter for farmers in Uttar Pradesh? It seems so as the government's decision against hiking the state advisory price (SAP) of Rs.290 per quintal has stunned growers in the state, with many exploring the possibility of migrating to other crops from the next season.
The farmers allege that the Akhilesh Yadav government caved in to the pressure of the sugar lobby and, despite a steep hike in the inputs like labour costs, seeds, fertilizer and diesel, chose not to increase the SAP.
"This is absolutely unacceptable," said Sudheer Panwar, convener of the Kisan Jagrati Manch.
Cane growers are now exploring other options.
"The Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research has worked out the cultivation cost alone at around Rs.300 (a quintal). Add to it other costs like transportation," Ram Avtaar Prajapati, a cane farmer from Gonda, pointed out, adding: "I cannot afford sugarcane any longer. From next year, I will go in for peppermint farming," he said.
"Any SAP less that 300-310 per quintal is unacceptable," he told IANS.
Farmers alleged that the state government put the interests of the sugar lobby over theirs and a "secret understanding was worked out".
Farmer's leader Arvind Kumar Singh said the government tilted in favour of the sugar mills after they complained of losses and asked whether this should mean that the ruling Samajwadi Party (SP) has abandoned the cane growers.
He also reminded the SP that its manifesto had promised that if it was voted to power, it would fix SAP as such that growers reap a profit of 50 percent on their basic investment.
"The government sorrily looks uncaring about the sugarcane farmers. With costs at least coming to Rs.311 from the farm to the sugar mills, the SAP of Rs.290 is simply not done," Arvind Kumar Singh fumed.
Cane Commissioner Rahul Bhatnagar, however, defended the SAP and pointed out that the decision was taken after taking into consideration "the lowering of sugar prices and problems faced by sugar mills".
Private sugar mills, though expressing satisfaction over no increase in the SAP, however seem to be besieged by confusion owing to its earlier stand of not proceeding with crushing in the current season and pressing for implemnting the Rangarajan Committee's recommendations.
The committee had recommended that 75 percent of the earnings of sugar mills be passed on to farmers. Farmers would have nothing to do with this, demanding an upfront high price due to increase in production costs.
By late Wednesday, 75 of the 126 private sugar mills had announced their inability to begin cushing, citing different reasons. While the non-enhancement of the SAP might brighten prospects of crushing by the private mill owners, farmers continue to feel cheated, firstly due to the delay in announcing the SAP and secondly on keeping it at par with last year's price.
Uttar Pradesh's sugar industry, worth Rs.35,000 crore and the sole agriculture-based industry in the state, is now oscillating between stunned farmers and adamant mill owners, say industry insiders.
It is after a gap of six years that the SAP has not been increased. Angry at the decision, the Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD) Thursday laid siege of the cane commissioner's office.
The all-powerful Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) has also challenged the state government's decision and has threatened to stall the operations of distilleries making ethanol.
A BKU spokesman said the suspense over crushing should end and the farmers should be immediately paid their dues and arrears from the previous years.
Members of the UP Sugar Mills Association, meanwhile, said that they were not in a position to pay more than Rs.225 per quintal and demanded that the state government bear the difference.
Private sugar mill owners say their production cost is around Rs.3,600 per quintal while the sale prices is Rs.2,900 per quintal. Last season, an official pointed out the sugarcane price went up by over 90 percent while the sale price increased only marginally.
Pointing out that the "non-cooperation of the state government" was leading to the plumetting sugarcane crop in the state, state BJP spokesman Vijay Bahadur Pathak told IANS that sowing operations in many areas like Deoria and Padrauna had gone down by 27 percent.
"The Akhilesh Yadav government's claims it has fulfilled the promises made in the party's manifesto but can it explain the U-turn on the sugarcane pricing?" Pathak questioned. He alleged that the state government had yielded to the pressure of the sugar lobby.
(Mohit Dubey can be contacted at mohit.d@ians.in)
