Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has directed the Finance Department to draw up a financial support plan to help revive three cooperative sugar factories in the state: Krishna Cooperative Sugar Factory in Athani (Belagavi), Nandi Cooperative Sugar Factory in Babaleshwar, and Bhimashankar Cooperative Sugar Factory in Indi (Vijayapura), reports The Hindu.
The three factories together require a total of ₹472 crore — with ₹192 crore needed for the Krishna factory, ₹150 crore for Nandi, and ₹130 crore for Bhimashankar.
The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by the Chief Minister and attended by Industries Minister M.B. Patil, Sugar and Agriculture Marketing Minister Shivanand S. Patil, and Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H.K. Patil.
According to Mr. M.B. Patil, the Krishna and Nandi factories also plan to set up cogeneration power plants with capacities of 27 MW and 37 MW, respectively. These projects aim to boost the factories’ financial stability through electricity production.
The financial support will be used for multiple needs, including clearing pending payments to sugarcane farmers, covering the transport costs of sugarcane, and purchasing essential power equipment.
CM Siddaramaiah instructed the Finance Department to work with the National Cooperative Development Corporation to design a comprehensive revival package for the factories.
