Sugar mills should pay Rs 350 per tonne over the fair and remunerative price (FRP) as the first instalment fixed by the government for the 2022-23 crushing season, said farmer leader and former MP Raju Shetti.
He was speaking at the 21st Oosh Parishad organised in Jaysingpur town of Shirol taluka in Kolhapur district.
Shetti’s organisation, Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana organises the Oosh Parishad, the annual congregation of farmers to show the strength of Shetti and the unity of farmers under the banner.
Heavy rainfall in the state has delayed the starting of the cane crushing season which was supposed to start on October 14.
The area under cane cultivation has increased in the state after bumper crops for consecutive two years. According to the sugar commissioner’s office, the area under cane cultivation is expected to be 14.87 lakh hectares and the mills are likely to crush 1,343 lakh tonnes of cane. Sugar output in the state is likely to be around 138 lakh tonnes this season.
