BADIN: Sindh Minister for Agriculture Mohammad Ismail Rahu has said that he is trying his best to persuade both sugar mills’ owners and cane growers to agree on a consensus rate of sugar cane crop for the 2019-20 season. He expressed his confidence that the two sides would settle the dispute amicably to ensure start of the cane crushing process very soon.

Mr Rahu was speaking to local reporters and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) workers in Rahuki on Monday.

He pointed out that deduction in weight at the time of purchasing each consignment of paddy crop was another dispute between paddy growers and rice millers. He claimed the “issue has almost been resolved” after he intervened and narrowed down the differences.

Our Staff Correspondent in Hyderabad adds: The agriculture minister had chaired a meeting of the Sugarcane Control Board on Oct 18 which remained inconclusive as far as the price issue is concerned. The millers’ side had agreed to start the crushing season from Nov 15 onwards. Another round of talks is yet to be held.

Matiari Sugar Mills set to procure sugar cane at Rs182/40kg rate, start crushing season

Growers’ side believes that a lobby within the Pakistan Sugar Mills Association (PSMA), Sindh chapter, is restraining those mills from starting crushing which have lit their boilers. Some cane growers suggest that the present situation has lent credence to such reports because the three mills that had fired up their boilers a couple of days back should have started crushing by now, instead of waiting.

Three of the sugar mills in Sindh — Chambar, Sakrand and Matiari — are said to have fired up their boilers ahead of the upcoming cane crushing season but farmers did not appear upbeat.

According to Matiari Sugar Mills personnel, the management is likely to start crushing in the first week of November after procuring cane crop at the rate of Rs182/40kg until Sindh government decides the official rate.

“We have been offered Rs182/40kg rate till the issuance of a notification ... in case the official rate is fixed above Rs182/40kg, the mills will pay the differential,” said Nadeem Shah, a cane grower of Matiari district.

He, however, appeared reluctant to start harvesting of his crop fearing that sugar cane might get dried in view of low temperature these days and it might drop further. Such conditions would increase sucrose recovery in the crop but may cause weight loss. He said growers would supply sugar cane once mills started procuring the crop.

Sindh Abadgar Board (SAB) vice president Mahmood Nawaz Shah confirmed that Sakrand Sugar Mills in Shaheed Benazirabad district and Chambar Sugar Mills in Tando Allahyar district had fired up their boilers but it was not clear as to when they would start procuring the crop. “Growers are not yet asked to start harvesting their crop which shows that millers are not going to procure the cane crop and start crushing season even if they have lit the boilers,” he said.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2019