Bagalkot, Karnataka: Sugarcane growers called off their protest on Friday after sugar factory owners agreed to pay Rs. 3,300 per tonne of cane, reported Deccan Herald.
The development came during a meeting convened by district in-charge minister R. B. Thimmapur, who brought both sides together. Factory owners agreed to clear all pending payments and assured that farmers would receive Rs. 3,300 per tonne within 14 days of supplying cane. Sugarcane crushing resumed in the district on Friday.
Thimmapur said the standoff between farmers and factory owners had ended and added that the government would make sure farmers do not face any further difficulties.
Basavant Kamble, district president of Raitha Sangha and Hasiru Sene, said the factories had already paid Rs. 100 crore in dues and had promised to settle the remaining Rs. 25 crore within two days. “They have agreed to pay the same rate to every farmer, without linking it to recovery. Because they accepted our demand, we are ending the protest,” he said.
Kamble also expressed regret over the violence near a sugar factory in the taluk, where more than 20 tractors were damaged.
