Sugarcane farmers under the banner of the Karnataka State Sugarcane Cultivators Association have launched a protest demanding a hike in FRP as the input cost has increased manifold, reports The Hindu.
The organization is demanding the government to pay FRP in the line of Uttar Pradesh where the SAP is Rs 3,500 per tonne.
Kurubur Shanthakumar, president of the association said, “The sugar mills have not yet paid the pending cane dues worth Rs 300 crore to the farmers that have worsened financial situation.”
The government has not announced the FRP for cane even though the crushing season commenced which is leading to a delay in the sugar mills clearing payment for the cane they had procured from farmers, he said.
Addressing the gathering of agitators, he said that the sugar mills are not paying farmers the income earned from selling byproducts like ethanol and the government should take steps to ensure that farmers get their dues from mills.
The agitators later submitted the memorandum of their demands to the deputy commissioner in which they have set a deadline of 15-days to accept their demands. They have threatened to intensify their agitation if the government fails to act.
