Dharmapuri, Tamil Nadu: Sugarcane farmers have asked the district administration to extend the crushing operations of the Dharmapuri District Cooperative Sugar Mill (DDCSM) located in Palacode, reports The New Indian Express.
The mill closed its doors on Friday for the 2022-23 crushing season after completing its crushing but the farmers are left with around 1,500 tonnes of cane to be crushed and want the mill to extend operations.
There are two sugar mills in the Dharmapuri district, DDCSM in Palacode and the Subramaniya Siva Cooperative Sugar Mill (SSSCSM) in Gopalapuram. The area under cane cultivation has increased due to surplus rainfall (1028 mm) in the district in 2022.
“This year, there were some disruptions in the Palacode mill due to the problem in the co-generation units and technical problems in the boiler. Due to this, the grinding was stopped for nearly 10 days. At present, over 1,500 tonnes of sugarcane are pending here,” said a farmer from the region.
“DDCSM has crushed over 2 lakh tonnes of cane with a recovery rate of 10%. The SSCSM will operate till May 10 and if the crushing of pending sugarcane is delayed the recovery rate will be affected,” said SA Chinnasamy, State President of the Tamilaga Vivasayigal Sangam.
The pending cane will be diverted to the SSCSM, said officials.
