Bengaluru, Nov 20: Protesting farmers, who are demanding Rs 200 more per tonne of sugarcane over and above the fair and remunerative price(FRP) announced by the Centre in July, blame the previous Siddaramaiah government for their problems.
The Siddaramaiah government, bowed to pressure from the sugar lobby to forego its power to fix the sugarcane state advisory price (SAP), compromising the interest of cane growers, they say.
Politicians own around 40% of the major sugar mills in the state and dominate the sugar lobby in Karnataka. The Karnataka Sugarcane (Purchase and Supply Control) Act, 2013, enacted by the BJP government headed by Jagadish Shettar after a decadelong struggle by farmers, vested with the state government the power to fix the sugarcane price each year. It also gives the government the power to seize or take over mills that fail to pay the SAP.
The government calculated the SAP by taking into account the revenue of sugar mills, including from byproducts like bagasse and molasses. The farmers were happy because the SAP was usually higher than the fair and remunerative price (FRP) fixed every year by the central Commission for Agricultural Price and Costs. The Siddaramaiah government implemented the act by fixing SAP for two years despite a stiff opposition from sugar mill owners. Some mill owners refused to pay the SAP but gave in after a favourable court order for the farmers and the government. This led mill owners to get the government to amend the act.
“Since the SAP has legal backing, the mills decided do away with the provision completely,” said Subhash Shirabur, a former member of Karnataka Sugarcane Control Board and a cane grower from Bagalkot. “Unfortunately, the government readily agreed. Now we have to beg the mills for the right price.”
In place of SAP, the government brought in a revenue-sharing formula in which the farmers and the mill owners divide profits at a ratio of 70:30.
“As per the amendment, the sugar mills have to pay the FRP within 15 days of cane supply and wait till the end of the season to share the profit,” said Muttappa Komar, Bagalkot zilla panchayat vice-president. “But in the four years since the amendment came into force, the farmers have not received any money apart from the FRP.” Former CM Jagadish Shettar says issues like pending dues and irregular payment have cropped up again because the government has no control over the mills. “Re-enacting the SAP law is the only solution to this problem,” he said. “The government should seriously consider this.”
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