Pilibhit, Uttar Pradesh: Four senior officials of a private sugar mill group have been booked for allegedly withholding sugarcane payments worth ₹561 crore in Kheri district, despite repeated government orders and recovery notices, reported The Times of India.
Kheri District Cane Officer (DCO) Ved Prakash Singh said the group’s mills in Gola, Palia and Khambharkhera failed to clear farmer dues even after directives mandating 85% tagging of sugar stocks, ethanol and byproducts. According to officials, the outstanding amounts are ₹235 crore for Gola mill, ₹168 crore for Palia, and ₹156.6 crore for Khambharkhera.
A case has been registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 318(4) (cheating and dishonesty) and 61(2) (criminal conspiracy). The complaint was lodged by Dr. Rajiv Kumar Singh, secretary of the Farmers’ Cooperative Cane Development Society.
In his complaint, Dr. Singh stated that Khambharkhera mill alone crushed 94.3 lakh quintals of sugarcane worth ₹346.1 crore between November 2024 and March 2025, but the company failed to make payments within the mandated 14-day period.
Despite repeated notices from the district and deputy cane commissioners, and even a ₹274 crore recovery certificate issued by the UP Cane Commissioner, the mills allegedly did not release payments to farmers.
