After assurance, farmers to wait till September 15

Jalandhar, August 14

The members of the Doaba Kisan Sangharsh Committee who had held protest outside the sugar mill on August 13 have decided to wait till September 15 after they were assured that the pending amount would be paid soon.

Notably, the members had announced to start holding dharnas from August 13 in demand of release of the payment of sugarcane that they had given to the mills.

The members said Rs 445 cr was to be paid by the private mills while the cooperative mills owed Rs 290 crore to the cane growers. Panel’s spokesperson Satnam Singh said Rs 735 cr was pending to be paid to the farmers.

“Rana Sugar mill owes Rs 119 cr while Phagwara’s Wahid Sandhar Sugar mill has to pay an amount of Rs 114 cr to the farmers,” alleged the members naming few mills.

The members said they had been asking for their due payments for the past many months and they had been approaching the government and the mills, but to no avail.

“This is not acceptable. We have been asking for our own money, which should be given to us at the earliest,” the members said. Panel chief Manjit Rai said the members had been assured that 25 per cent of the payments would be paid before September 15. —TNS