Farmer bodies submit memorandum, seek start of sugar mill operations

The district unit of the All-India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) on Saturday submitted a memorandum to Bhali Anandpur Sugar Mill’s authorities and expressed its resentment over the mill not being operational yet. It also demanded the authorities to restart the Mill, increase the rate, and address other demands of sugarcane farmers.

Sumit Dalal, secretary of the AIKS, said a delegation of the Bharatiya Kisan Union, Rohtak, and the AIKS, inspected the mill premises and reviewed the situation. It also expressed displeasure over the delayed operation of the mill.

“The state government is not addressing farmers’ issues. There is large-scale exploitation during crop procurement in mandis, fertilisers are not available, and this year the sugarcane rate has been increased by only Rs 15, which is far below the Swaminathan Commission’s recommendation. As a result, the farmers face losses every year, and the area under sugarcane cultivation is decreasing. Only if the farmers receive fair prices and the sugarcane is processed on time will they be able to continue cultivating sugarcane,” said Dalal.

He said they would be forced to launch a farmers’ agitation if the mill was not started soon.

Kisan Sabha district president Preet Singh, BKU’s Randhir Dhamad, Sunil Malik, Jogendra Banyani, Sajjan Bagdi, Sundar Sahab, Dalbir Baliyana, Teka Dhamad, Balwan Singh, Satbir Singh Dhamad, Kanwal Dhamad, Seva Singh, Ashish Khrawad, Jaswant Balam were part of the delegation.