Kathmandu: According to the media report, the government has increased the minimum support price of sugarcane for the ongoing crushing season by 8.39% to Rs 590 per quintal. The crushing season began in November last year.
The new rates are including the government subsidy of Rs 70 per quintal, said Urmila KC, undersecretary at the Ministry of Industry, Commerce and Supplies.
The new rates were approved by the Cabinet meeting held on Wednesday, said the government spokesperson Gyanendra Bahadur Karki.
The MSP for sugarcane last season was fixed at Rs 544.33 per quintal.
The sugarcane farmers are criticizing the government as there is a delay of two months to declare the sugarcane price. It is expected that the rates are announced before the start of the crushing season.
“We have fixed the new rates after taking into consideration the increase in the production cost and have consulted farmers and done field survey before recommending rates to the Industry Ministry,” said KC.
The government is fixing the floor price of sugarcane from 2018 to avoid clashes between farmers and sugar mills. Before that, the sugarcane prices in Nepal were fixed based on what Indian farmers get from their respective sugar mills.
