Sugarcane growers stage dharna at Bagaha

Speed Post News Network

Bagaha : The sugarcane growers staged demonstration and day long dharna on Ambedakar statue premises at Bagaha in West Champaran district on December 22, 2018, to protest the delay in the announcement of sugarcane price for the current season. They held the state government responsible for their exploitation by the sugar factories. A large number of Sugarcane farmers gathered at the dharna venue holding banners and placards and raised slogans against the state government.

The protesters led by Chhote Srivastava, Nandeshwar Pandey, and Pramit Kumar Singh said that CM Nitish Kumar remains indifferent to the plight of sugarcane farmers as the state government is yet to announce the price of sugarcane though crushing seasons began 47 days back. They threatened to give a call for Champaran Bandh on December 27, 2018, if the government fails to announce sugarcane price for current crushing before that.

Five sugar factories at Bagaha, Harinagar, Narakatiaganj, Majhaulia, and Lauria in West Champaran district have crushed over 123.05 crore quintals of early variety of sugarcanes till December 20, 2018, at previous rate, the leaders of sugarcane farmers said. The sugar factories are crushing sugarcane since first and second week of November 2018. They said the situation has badly hit the economic activities of West Champaran sugarcane growers.

Procurement of paddy at minimum support price(MSP) has also not started forcing the farmers to sale their paddy crop at throwaway price to the middlemen, said Manohar Patwari, a Ward Member of Binawalia -Bodasar panchayat under Bagaha 2 block.

Nandeshwar Pandey, Convenor, Progressive Sugarcane Farmers’ Front, said that the farmers had spent about Rs 77.8 crore on reaching sugarcane to the factory gates till December 20, 2018. The sugarcane growers of Bagaha had also burnt an effigy of Sika MLA and Sugarcane Development Minister Khursid alias Firoz Ahmad here on December  15, 2018.

Pramit Kumar Singh, a sugarcane farmer of Rampurwa-Lakshmipur, said that the farmer had borrowed money from moneylenders in the hope of getting price of the their sugarcane from to sugar factory after fortnight of the supply as payment is mandatory within a fortnight from the date of the supply. But, the factories are awaiting the announcement of sugarcane price by the government.