Raju Shetti warns of 'kata bandh' in Satara if sugar mills start crushing before cane price is settled
Former MP Raju Shetti said no mill in the district would be allowed to start if the Ajinkyatara factory tried to begin crushing before the cane price issue is resolved.
Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana leader and former MP Raju Shetti warned in Satara on Monday that sugar mills should not begin the crushing season until the cane price issue is resolved. He said that if an attempt was made to start the Ajinkyatara factory, a "kata bandh" agitation would be launched and not a single mill in the district would be allowed to begin operations.
Shetti visited the Ajinkyatara factory and held discussions with the administration there. He issued the warning after the visit.
Among his demands, Shetti said the procurement price of ethanol should be raised to Rs 70 a litre and the minimum support price (MSP) of sugar should be increased. He said petrol prices were rising but ethanol prices were not being raised, while the sugar MSP had remained unchanged for several years. Shetti alleged that this policy was causing financial losses to both farmers and mill owners.
Shetti also alleged that the Centre was pressing mill owners to start operations early. He claimed the Centre was in a hurry so that sugar prices did not rise during the coming festivals and new sugar reached the market. Shetti said: "It is not acceptable that farmers and mill owners bear the loss and the Centre arranges sugar for the market."
He said that harvesting cane early could reduce recovery and weight, and farmers feared a loss per acre as a result. He therefore demanded that crushing begin only after recovery and weight improve. He also appealed to farmers not to deliver poor-quality cane to factories in haste.
Speaking about the next steps, Shetti said a meeting of farmer leaders from Maharashtra and Karnataka with the concerned Union ministers was due in Delhi on October 12. According to him, the direction of the further agitation would be decided after seeing the Centre's stance.
Meanwhile, Shivaji Mohite, executive director of the Ajinkyatara factory, said the factory was currently shut. He said a further decision would be taken after a meeting of the board of directors.
