Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation Amit Shah today inaugurated the expanded facility of the Pravara Sugar Factory in Ahilyanagar, Maharashtra, and unveiled the statues of Padma Dr. Vithalrao Vikhe Patil and Padma Bhushan Balasaheb Vikhe Patil.
Amit Shah said that cooperative sugar mills should continue producing multi-feed ethanol even during the non-crushing season and should also expand into producing frozen vegetables, fruits, juices, fruit pulp, and similar products. He added that by entering into agreements with NAFED and NCCF, cooperative sugar mills need to become multi-dimensional.
On this occasion, several dignitaries were present, including Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, and Union Minister of State for Cooperation Murlidhar Mohol. Prior to this, the Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation visited Shirdi Sai Dham, offered prayers to Sai Baba, and prayed for the happiness and prosperity of all citizens of the country.
Shah said that Padma Vikhe Patil established what was in itself the world’s first cooperative sugar mill and this initiative ledto prosperity of farmers not only from Maharashtra but also in Gujarat, Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and several other states. He added that it was Padma Dr. VithalraoVikhe Patil who pioneered the system through which the profits of sugar mills went into farmers’ bank accounts instead of traders’ pockets.
Amit Shah said that today, the Dr. VithalraoVikhe Patil Cooperative Sugar Mill has also been renovated. He noted that when the mill was established in 1950–51, its processing capacity was 500 tonnes of sugarcane per day, which has now increased to 7200 tonnes per day. In the coming years, its processing capacity will rise from 7200 tonnes to 15000 tonnes of sugarcane per day.He said that when Prime Minister Modi established the Ministry of Cooperation, the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC) introduced a scheme to strengthen cooperative sugar mills. Under this scheme, financial support was provided to well-performing units, among which the Dr. VithalraoVikhe Patil Cooperative Sugar Mill is now being expanded.
Shah mentioned that the alcohol distillation plant of this sugar mill has increased its capacity from 15 kilolitres per day to 92 kilolitres per day (KLPD), and approval has been granted to further expand it to 240 kilolitres per day. Similarly, the ethanol plant’s capacity has grown from 20 kilolitres per day (KLPD), to 150 kilolitres per day (KLPD),, the biogas plant’s capacity has increased from 12,000 cubic meters per day to 30,000 cubic meters per day, and the cogeneration plant’s capacity has risen from 30 megawatts to 68 megawatts.
Union Home Minister and Minister of Cooperation said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, the number of sugar mills in the country has increased by 67, and sugar production has risen by 1 million metric tonnes. He added that the number of distilleries has doubled, ethanol production capacity has increased fivefold, and its supply has grown tenfold. Furthermore, ethanol blending in petrol has now reached 20 percent. He said that this clearly shows cooperative sugar mills have been immensely benefited since Narendra Modi took-over as Prime Minister. He further stated that one of the major decisions of the Modi government was waiving over ₹10,000 crore of income tax dues for farmers.He said that Modi Ji gave the cooperative sector the same status as corporations in case of tax settlements.
Shah said that for the first time, the Modi government enacted a Settlement Act to regularize cooperatives — and that too with retrospective effect. Union Minister of Cooperation added that this initiative will now relieve cooperative sugar mills from an annual financial burden of ₹4,400 crore.
Amit Shah, addressing cooperative sugar mills, appealed to convert their ethanol plants into multi-feed ethanol units and to set up systems to produce ethanol from vegetable waste, maize, and rice. He said that the necessary financial assistance for this will be provided by the National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC). He added that all cooperatives have been given priority in ethanol procurement. Similarly, the Modi government has provided ₹10,000 crore under NCDC’s loan scheme and reduced GST on molasses from 28 percent to 5 percent.
(With inputs from PIB)
