HYDERABAD, Nov 10: Only three out of 30 sugar mills have reportedly begun crushing in Matiari, Mirpurkhas and Sanghar districts amid fears the province will have 35-40 per cent less produce of sugarcane this year due to hike in power tariff, high cost of inputs, water shortage and above all government’s inability to enforce its writ with regard to sugarcane price.

The government’s own study put the decline this year (2008-09) in sugarcane produce at 14.1 per cent mainly “due to crisis of sugar mills and low rate for last year’s crop, forcing growers to switch over to wheat, sunflower and other Rabi crops from which they expected more return”.

The cane growers had already predicted 35-40 per cent decline in sugarcane this year and there are indicators that they have started switching over to paddy and other crops.

The mills have not yet paid the outstanding dues, which as per agriculture secretary’s own statement stand at Rs800 million.

Only Matiari Sugar Mills began crushing on Nov 1 followed by Sanghar and Tharparkar mills on Monday as per government’s notified date.

The government has this year fixed rate of sugarcane at Rs81 per 40 kilogram, just a rupee more than the Punjab’s Rs80 per maund. It is for the first time that Sindh’s growers have received a difference of only Re1 which is otherwise between Rs3 and Rs4 on account of various factors relating to cane’s cultivation in the province.

In addition, the Sindh government fixed crushing date for Nov 10, which as per practice in vogue was never fixed beyond October.

“We fixed the date in November to avoid questions over government’s writ because mill owners have their reasons not to commence crushing in October.

“Millers say that there is less sugar content in cane in October,” secretary of agriculture Sabhago Khan Jatoi told Dawn the other day.

The department’s study shows that in 2007 cane had been cultivated on 760,390.507 acres and this year it has been grown on 655,182.51 acres.

The growers say their dues run into billions of rupees whereas secretary of agriculture put them at Rs800 million. “We will even accept the figures given by the secretary provided he ensures their payment,” said Abdul Majeed Nizamani, president of the growers most effective body in the province – Sindh Abadgar Board.

He confirmed that Matiari, Sanghar and Tharparkar mills had begun crushing. “At this moment, there is no complaint about unavailability of cane,” he said.

He claimed that the managements of the mills were even giving growers subsidy on minimum transportation charges at the rate of Rs4.48 per kg of cane and believed that two main groups, Deewan and Tabani still owed Rs470 million and Rs300 million, respectively, to growers for three cane seasons.

Last year, Sindh government had fixed official rate of sugarcane at Rs67 per 40 kg, which remained in force till January 21, 2007 but thereafter it buckled under mills’ pressure and revised it downwards to Rs63.