Yamunanagar sugar mill to start crushing op on Nov 18

Sugarcane crushing will begin at the Saraswati Sugar Mills (SSM) on November 18. One of the largest sugar mills of the country, the SSM has fixed a target to crush 1.25 crore quintals of sugarcane in this current crushing season.

The SSM will be the first sugar mill in Haryana and Punjab to begin sugarcane crushing season this year. Chief Executive of SSM SK Sachdeva said that all preparations had been made for crushing of sugarcane at the mill. “We shall start crushing operation on November 18 in the interest of farmers,” said Sachdeva.

According to the information available, about 21,000 farmers of Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra and Ambala districts are associated with the SSM. Last year, the SSM had started its crushing operation on November 12 and it crushed about 1.4 crore quintals of sugarcane.

The announcement of starting of SSM’s crushing operation has brought cheer to the faces of farmers as a number of farmers are able to sow wheat crop in their agriculture fields after harvesting sugarcane.

The Haryana Government has fixed the price of sugarcane at Rs 415 per quintal for early variety this year. Lalit Kumar, Vice-President (Cane) of SSM, said that the mill had set up 45 centres for the purchase of sugarcane in the command area of the mill. He said that farmers would also be able to supply sugarcane directly to the mill.

“The SSM has implemented an advanced token system to minimise farmers' time in the mill yard. Farmers can obtain token numbers at their convenience, allowing them to supply sugarcane in the shortest possible time,” said Lalit Kumar.

DP Singh, Senior Vice-President (Administration) of the SSM, appealed to the farmers that they should cooperate by supplying all their sugarcane to the mill. “This year, the sugar mill has also made changes in the sugarcane calendaring, slip distribution system and sugarcane payment process in the interest of farmers,” said DP Singh.