Act against pvt mills refusing to buy cane, farmers tell CM

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 27

Under the banner of the Bhartiya Kisan Union (Rajewal), thousands of farmers held a demonstration here today to seek action against private sugar mills allegedly playing foul with sugarcane growers in the state.

In a memorandum submitted at the office of Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, BKU leader Balbir Singh Rajewal said that action should be taken against private mills refusing to procure sugarcane from farmers in their respective bounded areas.

Rajewal said that if private mills do not purchase sugarcane this year, these would not be allowed to operate in the state in the future.

Rajewal said that sugarcane was the best option to break the paddy-wheat cycle in the state. He alleged that private mills were deliberately harassing farmers by refusing to purchase sugarcane this year. He said that in the past, mills had earned huge profits and did not share the same with the farmers.

He said that it was not acceptable that millers should operate their units only when they earn profit and shut these when circumstances are not in their favour.

He said that in the name of farmers, certain mills took loans from banks on nominal interest rate. This is a fraud with the farmers. The Vigilance Bureau should be told to probe this “scandal”.

He said that the mills, which do not clear the dues of farmers within 15 days, should be told to pay interest to them.

He said that the agriculture department had failed to save the cotton crop from the whitefly attack.

He said that the BKU was strongly opposed to the agreements being signed under WTO pressure on international trade of agriculture produce. The Centre should not sign any agreement in this regard, he said.

Rajewal urged the state government to release the Rs 150 crore which is to be distributed to drought-hit farmers. He sought jobs for the kin of farmers who committed suicide under debt and an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh for their families.