Chandigarh: The Bhagwanpura Dhuri sugar mill is closing its operations due to three primary reasons: a lack of support from the state government, alleged unlawful activities by farmer unions, and a shortage of raw materials, reported The Indian Express.
Kunal Yadav, Chairman and Managing Director of the mill, explained that this decision, although seemingly abrupt, is the culmination of years of financial and social struggles faced by the mill’s owners.
Yadav emphasized that the management is committed to settling all outstanding dues with the farmers and has undertaken to procure sugarcane crops planted during the pre-notice period. The mill management had issued a notice on February 28, informing farmers not to sow sugarcane for the next year. However, by October-November of the previous year, sugarcane had already been planted on 3,000 acres, with 1,850 acres in Sangrur district alone.
“The mill is facing severe losses, amounting to more than Rs 100 crore as of now. As constant appeals for support, both from the current and the previous regimes, could not yield any result, we decided to shut down operations. It was a tough decision and when the government did not pay heed to us, we approached the court for relief,” Yadav was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.
