ISLAMABAD, Jan 13: The procurement price for sugarcane fixed by the provincial governments has failed in Sindh and the NWFP provinces due to a bumper crop and the farmers have been left at the mercy of mill owners.

Sources said the farmers had written a letter to the president and the prime minister for intervention to resolve the problem because they were finding it difficult to sell their produce.

As a result, the role of middlemen in the sale and purchase of sugarcane has re-emerged as the sugar mills have hired the services of contractors to provide sugarcane at lower rates by exploiting the farmers.

The sources said if the government did not take immediate steps to ensure official rates to the sugarcane farmers they may not be inclined to grow the crop next season which would create problems for the next government.

Facing a similar situation, the Sindh farmers had put their crops on fire a couple of years ago but they have yet to come out of financial woes arising out of crop damages.

The sources said the government had fixed Rs67 per 40kg sugarcane procurement price for Sindh and the NWFP but in both the provinces, the sugar mill owners were purchasing sugarcane at Rs58 and 57.It may be noted the sugarcane prices this year were fixed at the last year’s level by the provincial governments in view of a bumper 63 million tons crop.They said the mill owners did not start crushing on Nov 1 and 15 in Sindh and Punjab as agreed to the federal government’s secretaries’ committee although the farmers had started harvesting their crop on the basis of dates announced by the government.

Subsequently, at the provincial level, the mill owners refused to purchase sugarcane at the price fixed by the provincial governments and offered a much lower rate of Rs58-60 per 40 kg depending on different places.

They said only one sugar mill had purchased required quantities of sugarcane at the price fixed by the provincial government.

Sources in the ministry of industries said Punjab was the only province where the officially announced sugarcane procurement prices were being offered to the farmers, except minor problems in the central Punjab.

The sources said a delegation of farmers in Sindh had been denied an opportunity to call on caretaker Prime Minister Mohammedmian Soomro during his recent visit to Karachi where he discussed almost all the national issues ranging from wheat crisis to loadshedding and law and order situation.

They are now writing letters to the President and the Prime Minister for help.