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Tribune News Service
Jalandhar, November 12
Leader of the Opposition Sukhpal Singh Khaira today accused Capt Amarinder Singh of rubbing salt on the wounds of Punjab farmers by not increasing the state-assured price (SAP) of the sugarcane crop.
Khaira alleged that the CM was favouring the powerful sugar lobby of the state at the cost of poor farmers. He said while the retail prices of sugar were at an all-time high of Rs 4,100 per quintal, the state government was denying the farmers even a meagre increase.
He said while the SAP of sugarcane in Haryana was Rs 330 per quintal for early and mid-yield varieties, the SAP in Punjab was ranging between Rs 285- and 300 per quintal. He demanded that the state government must review its decision and hike the prices of SAP on par with Haryana — at Rs 330 per quintal. He said it was the fourth consecutive year when the state had failed to make any increase in SAP.
He alleged that the denial of any increase in the SAP was an outcome of the powerful private sugar lobby, which owned seven sugar mills.
He said government-owned sugar mills owed farmers Rs 71 crore as arrears for the last cane-crushing season. He claimed that it was surprising that though there were nine government-run sugar mills compared to seven owned by private companies, 70 per cent of the cane was crushed by these seven private mills as the state-owned mills were redundant.
Khaira claimed that the difference of Rs 30 per quintal in SAP between Haryana and Punjab, amounting to hundreds of crores, would now be pocketed by sugar barons.
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