Kolhapur, Maharashtra: Traffic disruptions are anticipated on the Mumbai-Bengaluru Highway as former MP and farm leader Raju Shetti, associated with the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana, has issued a warning of a potential ‘chakka jam’ (road blockade) starting Sunday unless demand for additional sugarcane payment is addressed, reported The Indian Express.
Since the beginning of November, the farmers’ group led by Shetti has been advocating for better payment for sugarcane supplied to mills, impacting operations in the Kolhapur and Sangli districts of Maharashtra.
The farmers organisation has declared its intention to obstruct traffic on the Mumbai-Bangalore Highway at various locations within Sangli and Kolhapur districts, the focal points of the protest. A resolution is anticipated at a meeting convened by Guardian Minister Hasan Mushriff later on Thursday.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Shetti asserted that the organisation would impede traffic throughout Maharashtra to underscore their demand, vowing to prohibit any vehicular movement. If the agitation precedes, the Mumbai-Bengaluru Highway, traversing Sangli and Kolhapur, is poised for congestion.
In response to heightened supply disruptions, sugar mills in Hatkanangale and Shirol taluka of Kolhapur district have officially decided to suspend their operations.
The farmers are insisting on an additional Rs 400 per tonne above the government-declared Fair and Remunerative Price (FRP) for cane purchased in the previous season. For the current season, the union is demanding the FRP as the initial installment payment for the cane.
However, mills have rebuffed the union’s demand, deeming it impractical. This impasse occurs amid a scarcity of cane at mills, prompting mill owners in Maharashtra to resort to acquiring cane from Karnataka.
Members of the Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghtana have ceased cane harvesting and transportation since the beginning of this month. State sugar commissionerate officials report that as of November 13, 103 mills have initiated sugarcane crushing.
