Swabhimani activists stop cane transport in Madha and Pandharpur as mills start harvest without declaring a price

Solapur: The Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana has turned aggressive after sugar mills began harvesting cane without announcing this season's price. Its activists stopped vehicles carrying cane in Madha and Pandharpur talukas, and locked the office of the Baramati Agro factory at Bhimanagar, demanding that the price be declared.

Farmers are angry that, while they are weighed down by production costs, mill owners have started harvesting without spelling out the rate. The organisation said it had taken this stand so that farmers are not forced to accept whatever price a mill decides once their cane has reached the factory.

Starting the mills without taking farmers into confidence or announcing a rate is unjust, the organisation says, and it will not allow harvesting or transport to begin until a fair price is declared. Farmers must be paid fairly for their labour, so that costs are covered and some money is left in their hands, it said.

The organisation warned that the agitation over cane prices in Solapur district would be intensified if mills did not announce rates at once.

Source: Saamana