Kathmandu: Sugarcane farmers in Nepal are facing problems as the government has not yet announced the minimum support price for sugarcane even though the crushing season is underway, according to kathmandupost.
The sugar mills are buying sugarcane from farmers at the rate fixed by the government last year which was Rs 590, said farmers. The millers have stated that they would pay the remaining amount after the government announces new rates, they said.
Farmers prefer to sell their produce to jaggery units at the rate of Rs 330 to Rs 350 per quintal as the government is delaying in fixing price, said a farmer.
The sugarcane produced in the district has shrunk to 50,000 tonnes as against 300,000 tonnes annually in the district, informed farmers.
The government had last year increased the minimum support price of cane by 8.9 % to Rs 590 per quintal. This year farmers have demanded the government hike the price to Rs 705 per quintal due to a hike in the input costs like diesel and fertilizers and labor costs.
The government usually announces the floor price before the harvest season based on the recommendations made by the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
The proposed minimum support price for this season has reached the cabinet for action, said Prakash Kumar Sanjel, joint secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development.
